ORCID Profile
0000-0003-4942-1984
Current Organisations
University of Queensland
,
Wildlife Conservation Society
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Environmental Science and Management | Conservation and Biodiversity | Natural Resource Management | Studies of Pacific Peoples' Societies | Ecosystem Function | Social and Cultural Geography | Atmospheric Sciences | Pacific Peoples Environmental Knowledge | Environmental Impact Assessment | Forestry Management and Environment | Environmental Management | Landscape Ecology | Human Geography | Climate Change Processes |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Forest and Woodlands Environments | Climate Change Adaptation Measures | Ecosystem Assessment and Management at Regional or Larger Scales | Consumption Patterns, Population Issues and the Environment | Ecosystem Adaptation to Climate Change | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Coastal and Estuarine Environments | Effects of Climate Change and Variability on Australia (excl. Social Impacts) | Social Impacts of Climate Change and Variability | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Marine Environments | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Mountain and High Country Environments
Related Links
Publications
A composite measure of habitat loss for entire assemblages of species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-06-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13331
Abstract: Habitat destruction is among the greatest threats facing bio ersity, and it affects common and threatened species alike. However, metrics for communicating its impacts typically overlook the nonthreatened component of assemblages. This risks the loss of habitat going unreported for species that comprise the majority of assemblages. We adapted a widely used measure for summarizing researcher output (the h index) to provide a metric that describes natural habitat loss for entire assemblages, inclusive of threatened and nonthreatened species. For each of 447 Australian native terrestrial bird species, we combined information on their association with broad vegetation groups with distributional range maps to identify the difference between the estimated pre-European and current extents of potential habitat, defined as vegetation groups most closely associated with each species. From this, we calculated the loss index (LI), which revealed that 30% of native birds have each lost at least 30% of their potential natural habitat (LI = 30). At the subcontinental scale, LIs ranged from 15 in arid Australia to 61 in the highly transformed southeastern part of the country. Different subcomponents of the assemblage had different LI values. For ex le, Australia's parrots (n = 52 species) had an LI of 38, whereas raptors (n = 32 species) had an LI of 25. The LI is simple to calculate and can be determined using readily available spatial information on species distributions, native vegetation associations, and human impacts on natural land cover. This metric, including the curves used to deduce it, could complement other bio ersity indices if it is used for regional and global bio ersity assessments that compare the status of natural habitat extent for assemblages within and among nations, monitor changes through time, and forecast future changes to guide strategic land-use planning. The LI is an intuitive tool that can be used to summarize and communicate how human actions affect whole assemblages, not just threatened species.
Identifying global centers of unsustainable commercial harvesting of species
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 05-04-2019
Abstract: High-risk areas contain 82% of all species and % of the ranges of Critically Endangered species threatened by overexploitation.
Persistence of methodological, taxonomical, and geographical bias in assessments of species' vulnerability to climate change: A review
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2018
All threatened species habitat is important
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-07-2019
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12518
Restoration priorities to achieve the global protected area target
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-04-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12646
Accelerated shifts in terrestrial life zones under rapid climate change
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-11-2022
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.15962
Abstract: Rapid climate change is impacting bio ersity, ecosystem function, and human well‐being. Though the magnitude and trajectory of climate change are becoming clearer, our understanding of how these changes reshape terrestrial life zones—distinct biogeographic units characterized by biotemperature, precipitation, and aridity representing broad‐scale ecosystem types—is limited. To address this gap, we used high‐resolution historical climatologies and climate projections to determine the global distribution of historical (1901–1920), contemporary (1979–2013), and future (2061–2080) life zones. Comparing the historical and contemporary distributions shows that changes from one life zone to another during the 20th century impacted 27 million km 2 (18.3% of land), with consequences for social and ecological systems. Such changes took place in all biomes, most notably in Boreal Forests, Temperate Coniferous Forests, and Tropical Coniferous Forests. Comparing the contemporary and future life zone distributions shows the pace of life zone changes accelerating rapidly in the 21st century. By 2070, such changes would impact an additional 62 million km 2 (42.6% of land) under “business‐as‐usual” (RCP8.5) emissions scenarios. Accelerated rates of change are observed in hundreds of ecoregions across all biomes except Tropical Coniferous Forests. While only 30 ecoregions (3.5%) had over half of their areas change to a different life zone during the 20th century, by 2070 this number is projected to climb to 111 ecoregions (13.1%) under RCP4.5 and 281 ecoregions (33.2%) under RCP8.5. We identified weak correlations between life zone change and threatened vertebrate richness, levels of vertebrate endemism, cropland extent, and human population densities within ecoregions, illustrating the ubiquitous risks of life zone changes to erse social–ecological systems. The accelerated pace of life zone changes will increasingly challenge adaptive conservation and sustainable development strategies that incorrectly assume current ecological patterns and livelihood provisioning systems will persist.
Sixteen years of change in the global terrestrial human footprint and implications for biodiversity conservation
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-08-2016
DOI: 10.1038/NCOMMS12558
Abstract: Human pressures on the environment are changing spatially and temporally, with profound implications for the planet’s bio ersity and human economies. Here we use recently available data on infrastructure, land cover and human access into natural areas to construct a globally standardized measure of the cumulative human footprint on the terrestrial environment at 1 km 2 resolution from 1993 to 2009. We note that while the human population has increased by 23% and the world economy has grown 153%, the human footprint has increased by just 9%. Still, 75% the planet’s land surface is experiencing measurable human pressures. Moreover, pressures are perversely intense, widespread and rapidly intensifying in places with high bio ersity. Encouragingly, we discover decreases in environmental pressures in the wealthiest countries and those with strong control of corruption. Clearly the human footprint on Earth is changing, yet there are still opportunities for conservation gains.
Four Steps for the Earth: mainstreaming the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 02-06-2020
Abstract: The upcoming meeting of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and future adoption of the new Global Bio ersity Framework, represent an opportunity to transform humanity's relationship with nature. Restoring nature while meeting human needs requires a bold vision, but this will only succeed if bio ersity conservation can be mainstreamed in society. Here, we present an overarching framework that could support this mainstreaming: the Mitigation and Conservation Hierarchy. This novel framework places the well-established four-step Mitigation Hierarchy for mitigating and compensating the impacts of developments on bio ersity (1: Avoid, 2: Minimise, 3: Restore, 4: Offset, towards a target such as No Net Loss of bio ersity) within a broader framing that encompasses all conservation actions. We illustrate the potential application of the framework in four cases national governments, sub-national levels (specifically the City of London, a fishery, and indigenous groups), companies, and the general public. The Mitigation and Conservation Hierarchy supports decisions about both the choice of actions to conserve and restore nature, and evaluation of the effectiveness of those actions, across sectors and scales. As such it can guide actions towards a sustainable future for people and nature in support of the CBD's vision.
The costs of managing key threats to Australia's biodiversity
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-03-2023
Abstract: Budgeting for bio ersity conservation requires realistic estimates of threat abatement costs. However, data on threat management costs are often unavailable or unable to be extrapolated across relevant locations and scales. Conservation expenditure largely occurs without a priori cost estimates of management activities and is not recorded in ways that can inform future budgets or cost‐effective management decisions. We provided transparent, broadly applicable cost models for 18 Threat Abatement Strategies aimed at managing the processes threatening Australia's bio ersity. We defined the actions required to implement each strategy and used a consistent structure to classify costs of labour, travel, consumables and equipment. We drew upon expert knowledge and published literature to parameterise each model, estimating the implementation cost of each strategy across the Australian continent, accounting for spatial variables such as threat presence, terrain, and travel distance. Estimated annualised costs for the threat abatement strategies varied considerably between strategies and across Australia, ranging from $24 to $879,985 per km 2 ($0.24–$8880 per ha). On average, labour was the largest cost component (49%), followed by consumables (37%), travel (13%) and equipment (2%). Based on national scale variables and assumptions, cost estimates across Australia for each threat abatement strategy ranged from +44% and −33% of the most common cost estimate. Policy implications . We provide a consistent and transparent approach to budgeting for threat abatement strategies, aiming to improve conservation planning processes, outcomes, and reporting across Australia. In addition, understanding the budget required to achieve threat management outcomes can aid revenue‐raising and target setting. The models, cost layers and estimates we generate provide the basis for a nationally consistent approach for estimating and recording the cost of bio ersity management strategies, which should be continually updated and improved with local‐scale information over time.
Climate change vulnerability assessment of species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-10-2018
DOI: 10.1002/WCC.551
Abstract: Assessing species' vulnerability to climate change is a prerequisite for developing effective strategies to conserve them. The last three decades have seen exponential growth in the number of studies evaluating how, how much, why, when, and where species will be impacted by climate change. We provide an overview of the rapidly developing field of climate change vulnerability assessment (CCVA) and describe key concepts, terms, steps and considerations. We stress the importance of identifying the full range of pressures, impacts and their associated mechanisms that species face and using this as a basis for selecting the appropriate assessment approaches for quantifying vulnerability. We outline four CCVA assessment approaches, namely trait‐based, correlative, mechanistic and combined approaches and discuss their use. Since any assessment can deliver unreliable or even misleading results when incorrect data and parameters are applied, we discuss finding, selecting, and applying input data and provide ex les of open‐access resources. Because rare, small‐range, and declining‐range species are often of particular conservation concern while also posing significant challenges for CCVA, we describe alternative ways to assess them. We also describe how CCVAs can be used to inform IUCN Red List assessments of extinction risk. Finally, we suggest future directions in this field and propose areas where research efforts may be particularly valuable. This article is categorized under: Climate, Ecology, and Conservation Extinction Risk
A meta-analysis of crop yield under climate change and adaptation
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-03-2014
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2153
Rapid assessment in conservation research: a critique of avifaunal assessment techniques illustrated by Ecuadorian and Madagascan case study data
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2004
Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-09-2021
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.15844
Abstract: Marine species are declining at an unprecedented rate, catalyzing many nations to adopt conservation and management targets within their jurisdictions. However, marine species and the biophysical processes that sustain them are naive to international borders. An understanding of the prevalence of cross‐border species distributions is important for informing high‐level conservation strategies, such as bilateral or regional agreements. Here, we examined 28,252 distribution maps to determine the number and locations of transboundary marine plants and animals. More than 90% of species have ranges spanning at least two jurisdictions, with 58% covering more than 10 jurisdictions. All jurisdictions have at least one transboundary species, with the highest concentrations of transboundary species in the USA, Australia, Indonesia, and the Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction. Distributions of mapped bio ersity indicate that overcoming the challenges of multinational governance is critical for a much wider suite of species than migratory megavertebrates and commercially exploited fish stocks—the groups that have received the vast majority of multinational management attention. To effectively protect marine bio ersity, international governance mechanisms (particularly those related to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on Migratory Species, and Regional Seas Organizations) must be expanded to promote multinational conservation planning, and complimented by a holistic governance framework for bio ersity beyond national jurisdiction.
Health risk factors and the incidence of hypertension: 4-Year prospective findings from a national cohort of 60 569 Thai Open University students
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 06-2013
Human responses to climate change will seriously impact biodiversity conservation: It's time we start planning for them
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-12-2014
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12083
Comparing the effects of calibration and climate errors on a statistical crop model and a process-based crop model
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-10-2014
Designing Climate-Resilient Marine Protected Area Networks by Combining Remotely Sensed Coral Reef Habitat with Coastal Multi-Use Maps
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 08-12-2015
DOI: 10.3390/RS71215849
Assisted colonization risk assessment Response
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 28-05-2021
People have shaped most of terrestrial nature for at least 12,000 years
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 19-04-2021
Abstract: The current bio ersity crisis is often depicted as a struggle to preserve untouched habitats. Here, we combine global maps of human populations and land use over the past 12,000 y with current bio ersity data to show that nearly three quarters of terrestrial nature has long been shaped by erse histories of human habitation and use by Indigenous and traditional peoples. With rare exceptions, current bio ersity losses are caused not by human conversion or degradation of untouched ecosystems, but rather by the appropriation, colonization, and intensification of use in lands inhabited and used by prior societies. Global land use history confirms that empowering the environmental stewardship of Indigenous peoples and local communities will be critical to conserving bio ersity across the planet.
The Cost of Conservation
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 18-07-2008
Mismatch between bird species sensitivity and the protection of intact habitats across the Americas
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-08-2021
DOI: 10.1111/ELE.13859
Abstract: Protected areas are highly heterogeneous in their effectiveness at buffering human pressure, which may h er their ability to conserve species highly sensitive to human activities. Here, we use 60 million bird observations from eBird to estimate the sensitivity to human pressure of each bird species breeding in the Americas. Concerningly, we find that ecoregions hosting large proportions of high‐sensitivity species, concentrated in tropical biomes, do not have more intact protected habitat. Moreover, 266 high‐sensitivity species have little or no intact protected habitat within their distributions. Finally, we show that protected area intactness is decreasing faster where high‐sensitivity species concentrate. Our results highlight a major mismatch between species conservation needs and the coverage of intact protected habitats, which likely h ers the long‐term effectiveness of protected areas at retaining species. We highlight ecoregions where protection and management of intact habitats, complemented by restoration, is urgently needed.
The performance and potential of protected areas
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-2014
DOI: 10.1038/NATURE13947
Recent increases in human pressure and forest loss threaten many Natural World Heritage Sites
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2017
Global assessment of ecoregion intactness
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2019
A robust goal is needed for species in the Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-12-2020
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12778
Abstract: In 2010, Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted the Strategic Plan for Bio ersity 2011–2020 to address the loss and degradation of nature. Subsequently, most bio ersity indicators continued to decline. Nevertheless, conservation actions can make a positive difference for bio ersity. The emerging Post‐2020 Global Bio ersity Framework has potential to catalyze efforts to “bend the curve” of bio ersity loss. Thus, the inclusion of a goal on species, articulated as Goal B in the Zero Draft of the Post‐2020 Framework, is essential. However, as currently formulated, this goal is inadequate for preventing extinctions, and reversing population declines both of which are required to achieve the CBD's 2030 Mission. We contend it is unacceptable that Goal B could be met while most threatened species deteriorated in status and many avoidable species extinctions occurred. We examine the limitations of the current wording and propose an articulation with robust scientific basis. A goal for species that strives to end extinctions and recover populations of all species that have experienced population declines, and especially those at risk of extinction, would help to align actors toward the transformative actions and interventions needed for humans to live in harmony with nature.
Metrics of progress in the understanding and management of threats to Australian birds.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-11-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13220
Abstract: Although evidence-based approaches have become commonplace for determining the success of conservation measures for the management of threatened taxa, there are no standard metrics for assessing progress in research or management. We developed 5 metrics to meet this need for threatened taxa and to quantify the need for further action and effective alleviation of threats. These metrics (research need, research achievement, management need, management achievement, and percent threat reduction) can be aggregated to examine trends for an in idual taxon or for threats across multiple taxa. We tested the utility of these metrics by applying them to Australian threatened birds, which appears to be the first time that progress in research and management of threats has been assessed for all threatened taxa in a faunal group at a continental scale. Some research has been conducted on nearly three-quarters of known threats to taxa, and there is a clear understanding of how to alleviate nearly half of the threats with the highest impact. Some management has been attempted on nearly half the threats. Management outcomes ranged from successful trials to complete mitigation of the threat, including for one-third of high-impact threats. Progress in both research and management tended to be greater for taxa that were monitored or occurred on oceanic islands. Predation by cats had the highest potential threat score. However, there has been some success reducing the impact of cat predation, so climate change (particularly drought), now poses the greatest threat to Australian threatened birds. Our results demonstrate the potential for the proposed metrics to encapsulate the major trends in research and management of both threats and threatened taxa and provide a basis for international comparisons of evidence-based conservation science.
Response from Arlettaz and Colleagues
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 02-2011
Quantifying biases in marine-protected-area placement relative to abatable threats
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-05-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13340
Does recovery planning improve the status of threatened species?
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2011
Global mismatch between greenhouse gas emissions and the burden of climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-02-2016
DOI: 10.1038/SREP20281
Abstract: Countries export much of the harm created by their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions because the Earth’s atmosphere intermixes globally. Yet, the extent to which this leads to inequity between GHG emitters and those impacted by the resulting climate change depends on the distribution of climate vulnerability. Here, we determine empirically the relationship between countries’ GHG emissions and their vulnerability to negative effects of climate change. In line with the results of other studies, we find an enormous global inequality where 20 of the 36 highest emitting countries are among the least vulnerable to negative impacts of future climate change. Conversely, 11 of the 17 countries with low or moderate GHG emissions, are acutely vulnerable to negative impacts of climate change. In 2010, only 28 (16%) countries had an equitable balance between emissions and vulnerability. Moreover, future emissions scenarios show that this inequality will significantly worsen by 2030. Many countries are manifestly free riders causing others to bear a climate change burden, which acts as a disincentive for them to mitigate their emissions. It is time that this persistent and worsening climate inequity is resolved and for the largest emitting countries to act on their commitment of common but differentiated responsibilities.
The costs and benefits of restoring a continent's terrestrial ecosystems
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-09-2022
Abstract: The rise in global commitments to restore habitat underlines its importance to halt bio ersity loss and abate climate change. To effectively plan for landscape‐scale restoration efforts, decision makers need to prioritise where restoration should occur and have a method to estimate its cost. Here, we describe a systematic approach to determine where cost‐effective restoration actions should be located to achieve targeted levels of ecosystem coverage across Australia without compromising agricultural production. We find that spending approximately AU$2 billion (0.1% of Australia's 2019 Gross Domestic Product) annually for 30 years could restore 13 million ha of degraded land without affecting intensive agriculture and urban areas. This initiative would result in almost all (99.8%) of Australia's degraded terrestrial ecosystems reaching 30% vegetation coverage, enabling a trajectory to recover critical ecological functions, abate almost one billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent and produce AU$12–46 billion net present value in carbon offset revenue. The carbon market revenue is estimated to cover up to 111% of the investment required for the restoration. Our research shows that the recovery of degraded ecosystems in Australia is both attainable and affordable. Synthesis and applications . With growing international restoration commitments, governments and environmental organisations need methods to plan and budget their commitments. Here, we present a systematic approach to determine where restoration actions should be located in Australia to achieve targeted vegetation coverage and quantify the expected costs, carbon abatement and revenue. This study is an important advance that will aid governments and environmental organisations by providing financial and spatial planning methods to progress their restoration commitments.
Severe human pressures in the Sundaland biodiversity hotspot
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-01-2020
DOI: 10.1111/CSP2.169
A global plan for nature conservation
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-09-2017
DOI: 10.1038/NATURE24144
Restoring habitat for fire-impacted species’ across degraded Australian landscapes
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 08-2022
Abstract: In the summer of 2019–2020, southern Australia experienced the largest fires on record, detrimentally impacting the habitat of native species, many of which were already threatened by past and current anthropogenic land use. A large-scale restoration effort to improve degraded species habitat would provide fire-affected species with the chance to recover and persist in burnt and unburnt habitat. To facilitate this, decision-makers require information on priority species needs for restoration intervention, the suite of potential restoration interventions, and the priority locations for applying these interventions. We prioritize actions in areas where restoration would most likely provide cost-effective benefits to priority species (defined by each species proportion of habitat burned, threat status, and vulnerability to fires), by integrating current and future species habitat suitability maps with spatially modelled costs of restoration interventions such as replanting, removing invasive species, and implementing ecologically appropriate fire management. We show that restoring the top ∼69% (112 million hectares) of the study region (current and future distributions of priority species) accounts for, on average, 95% of current and future habitat for every priority species and costs ∼AUD$73 billion yr −1 (AUD$650 hectare −1 yr −1 ) annualized over 30 years. This effort would include restoration actions over 6 million hectares of fire-impacted habitat, costing ∼AUD$8.8 billion/year. Large scale restoration efforts are often costly but can have significant societal co-benefits beyond bio ersity conservation. We also show that up to 291 MtCO2 (∼150 Mt DM) of carbon could be sequestered by restoration efforts, resulting in approximately AUD$253 million yr −1 in carbon market revenue if all carbon was remunerated. Our approach highlights the scale, costs, and benefits of targeted restoration activities both inside and outside of the immediate bushfire footprint over vast areas of different land tenures.
Need for conservation planning in postconflict Colombia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-05-2201
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12935
Annexin A1 Is Required for Efficient Tumor Initiation and Cancer Stem Cell Maintenance in a Model of Human Breast Cancer.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 08-03-2021
Abstract: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has a poor outcome compared to other breast cancer subtypes, and new therapies that target the molecular alterations driving tumor progression are needed. Annexin A1 is an abundant multi-functional Ca2+ binding and membrane-associated protein. Reported roles of Annexin A1 in breast cancer progression and metastasis are contradictory. Here, we sought to clarify the functions of Annexin A1 in the development and progression of TNBC. The association of Annexin A1 expression with patient prognosis in subtypes of TNBC was examined. Annexin A1 was stably knocked down in a panel of human and murine TNBC cell lines with high endogenous Annexin A1 expression that were then evaluated for orthotopic growth and spontaneous metastasis in vivo and for alterations in cell morphology in vitro. The impact of Annexin A1 knockdown on the expression of genes involved in mammary epithelial cell differentia tion and epithelial to mesenchymal transition was also determined. Annexin A1 mRNA levels correlated with poor patient prognosis in basal-like breast tumors and also in the basal-like 2 subset of TNBCs. Unexpectedly, loss of Annexin A1 expression had no effect on either primary tumor growth or spontaneous metastasis of MDA-MB-231_HM xenografts, but abrogated the growth rate of SUM149 orthotopic tumors. In an MMTV-PyMT driven allograft model of breast cancer, Annexin A1 depletion markedly delayed tumor formation in both immuno-competent and immuno-deficient mice and induced epithelial to mesenchymal transition and upregulation of basal markers. Finally, loss of Annexin A1 resulted in the loss of a discrete CD24+/Sca1− population containing putative tumor initiating cells. Collectively, our data demonstrate a novel cell-autonomous role for Annexin A1 in the promotion of tumor-forming capacity in a model of human breast cancer and suggest that some basal-like TNBCs may require high endogenous tumor cell Annexin A1 expression for continued growth.
Habitat structure and proximity to forest edge affect the abundance and distribution of forest-dependent birds in tropical coastal forests of southeastern Madagascar
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2004
Targeting Global Protected Area Expansion for Imperiled Biodiversity
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 24-06-2014
Nutrition label experience and consumption of transitional foods among a nationwide cohort of 42,750 Thai adults
Publisher: Emerald
Date: 06-02-2017
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to assess the usefulness of nutrition labels in Thailand during nutrition transition from traditional to modern diets that increase salt, sugar, and calorie intake and to note socio-demographic interactions and associations with consumption of transitional processed foods. The authors studied 42,750 distance learning Open University adults aged 23-96 years in 2013 residing nationwide and participating in an ongoing community-based prospective cohort study. The authors used multivariable logistic regression to relate nutrition label experiences (“read”, “good understand”, “frequent use”), socio-demographic factors, and consumption of four transitional foods. These foods included “unhealthy” instant foods, carbonated soft drinks, and sweet drinks, or “healthy” milk. Overall, two-thirds reported good understanding and frequent use of nutrition labels. Unhealthy transition-indicator processed foods were frequently consumed: instant foods (7 per cent), (carbonated) soft drinks (15 per cent), and sweet drinks (41 per cent). Frequent users of nutrition labels (e.g. females, older persons, professionals) were less likely to consume unhealthy indicator foods. Those with the most positive overall nutrition label experience (“read” + “good understanding” + “frequent use”) had the best indicator food profiles: instant foods (odds ratio (OR) 0.63 95%CI, 0.56-0.70) soft drinks (OR 0.56 95%CI, 0.52-0.61) sweet drinks (OR 0.79 95%CI, 0.74-0.85) milk (OR 1.87 95%CI, 1.74-2.00). Knowledge protected – those with most nutrition label experience were least likely to consume unhealthy foods. Results support government regulated nutrition labels, expanding to include sweet drinks. The study is remarkable for its large size and nationwide footprint. Study subjects were educated, represent Thais of the future, and show high awareness of transition-indicator foods.
Madagascar: Crime threatens biodiversity
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 22-02-2019
Essential Indicators for Measuring Area-Based Conservation Effectiveness in the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 25-03-2020
DOI: 10.20944/PREPRINTS202003.0370.V1
Abstract: Work has begun in earnest to formulate a post-2020 Global Bio ersity Framework which will outline the vision and targets for the next decade of bio ersity conservation and beyond. However, the performance of the 2011-2020 Strategic Plan for Bio ersity suggests that even a meaningful target can fail to deliver if not accompanied by fit-for-purpose indicators. Here we provide a review of how & lsquo rotected area& rsquo effectiveness was addressed in the 2011-2020 plan and based on this, provide recommendations for fit-for-purpose indicators that will measure how such efforts contribute to the conservation of bio ersity. Indicators need to be built on quantitative data from site-level bio ersity monitoring of species and ecosystems combined with measurements of the state of nature in near-time, informed by remote-sensed products and other technologies. Additionally, indicators need to capture whether the essential elements of good management are in place including the identification of ecological values, threats, and objectives, equitable governance, and sufficient management resources and capacity. These fit-for-purpose indicators will require multilateral collaboration to galvanize support for, and resources to develop, the necessary infrastructure to collate and store information from countries.
Multinational Coordination Required for Conservation of Over 90% of Marine Species
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 24-08-2020
DOI: 10.20944/PREPRINTS202008.0525.V1
Abstract: Marine species are declining at an unprecedented rate, catalyzing many nations to adopt conservation and management targets within their jurisdictions. However, marine species are naive to international borders and an understanding of cross-border species distributions is important for informing high-level conservation strategies, such as bilateral or regional agreements. Here, we examined 28,252 distribution maps to determine the number and locations of marine transboundary species. Over 90% of species have ranges spanning at least two jurisdictions, with 58% covering over ten jurisdictions. The highest concentrations of transboundary species are in the USA, Australia, and Indonesia. To effectively protect marine bio ersity, international governance mechanisms& mdash articularly those related to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on Migratory Species, and Regional Seas Organizations& mdash must be expanded to promote multinational conservation planning, and complimented by a holistic governance framework for bio ersity beyond national jurisdiction.
Climatic controls of decomposition drive the global biogeography of forest-tree symbioses
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-2019
DOI: 10.1038/S41586-019-1128-0
Abstract: The identity of the dominant root-associated microbial symbionts in a forest determines the ability of trees to access limiting nutrients from atmospheric or soil pools
The mesoscavenger release hypothesis and implications for ecosystem and human well‐being
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-05-2019
DOI: 10.1111/ELE.13288
Abstract: Many apex scavenger species, including nearly all obligate scavengers, are in a state of rapid decline and there is growing evidence these declines can drastically alter ecological food webs. Our understanding of how apex scavengers regulate populations of mesoscavengers, those less-efficient scavengers occupying mid-trophic levels, is improving yet, there has been no comprehensive evaluation of the evidence around the competitive release of these species by the loss of apex scavengers. Here we present current evidence that supports the mesoscavenger release hypothesis, the increase in mesoscavengers and increase in carrion in the face of declining apex scavengers. We provide two models of scavenger dynamics to demonstrate that the mesoscavenger release hypothesis is consistent with ecological theory. We further examine the ecological and human well-being implications of apex scavenger decline, including carrion removal and disease regulation services.
Towards a Threat Assessment Framework for Ecosystem Services
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2016.12.011
Abstract: How can we tell if the ecosystem services upon which we rely are at risk of being lost, potentially permanently? Ecosystem services underpin human well-being, but we lack a consistent approach for categorizing the extent to which they are threatened. We present an assessment framework for assessing the degree to which the adequate and sustainable provision of a given ecosystem service is threatened. Our framework combines information on the states and trends of both ecosystem service supply and demand, with reference to two critical thresholds: demand exceeding supply and ecosystem service 'extinction'. This framework can provide a basis for global, national, and regional assessments of threat to ecosystem services, and accompany existing assessments of threat to species and ecosystems.
Author Correction: Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-01-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-021-20999-7
Abstract: A Correction to this paper has been published: 0.1038/s41467-021-20999-7.
Just ten percent of the global terrestrial protected area network is structurally connected via intact land
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-09-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-18457-X
Abstract: Land free of direct anthropogenic disturbance is considered essential for achieving bio ersity conservation outcomes but is rapidly eroding. In response, many nations are increasing their protected area (PA) estates, but little consideration is given to the context of the surrounding landscape. This is despite the fact that structural connectivity between PAs is critical in a changing climate and mandated by international conservation targets. Using a high-resolution assessment of human pressure, we show that while ~40% of the terrestrial planet is intact, only 9.7% of Earth’s terrestrial protected network can be considered structurally connected. On average, 11% of each country or territory’s PA estate can be considered connected. As the global community commits to bolder action on abating bio ersity loss, placement of future PAs will be critical, as will an increased focus on landscape-scale habitat retention and restoration efforts to ensure those important areas set aside for conservation outcomes will remain (or become) connected.
The Risks and Opportunities of Translating Terrestrial Biodiversity Offsets to the Marine Realm
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 17-01-2018
Diversity of a semi-arid, intact Mediterranean ecosystem in southwest Australia
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 02-07-2008
DOI: 10.5194/WE-8-84-2008
Abstract: Abstract. The drier parts of the Mediterranean biome of southwest Australia contain the largest remaining Mediterranean woodlands and shrublands on Earth. Despite this, there has been no formal, comprehensive assessment of their bio ersity. The region abuts the southwest Australian floristic region which has received much scientific attention. The aim of this paper is to provide the first general overview of the bio ersity of part of this intact, yet relatively unknown, Mediterranean ecosystem. We do this by synthesizing data from State Government agencies and published research. We found that, like other parts of southwest Australia, the region has globally significant levels of plant species ersity. More than 2400 plant species, including 291 species considered threatened, have been recorded, representing one-sixth of all Australia’s vascular plant species. Eleven of Australia’s 23 major vegetation groups are represented even though the region covers less than 1% of continental Australia. We documented 170 vertebrate species, including 31 threatened species, with a particularly high richness of reptile species (n = 46). We highlight how little is known about this region. For ex le, 116 vertebrate species not recorded in the region probably occur there based on their habitat requirements and known distributions. An examination of plant and vertebrate ersity in the region, using a half degree latitude and longitude grid cells, showed a highly heterogeneous pattern of species richness and vulnerability, with a general decline in species richness from southwest to northeast. Conservation strategies that rely on capturing the highest levels of bio ersity in a series of protected areas are unlikely to guarantee protection for all species given these high levels of heterogeneity. Instead, a region-wide conservation plan should involve targeted ecological research, consideration of ecological processes and stakeholder consultation.
Regional scalable priorities for national biodiversity and carbon conservation planning in Asia
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 27-08-2021
Abstract: Scalable ranking approaches can map effective bio ersity and climate targets for national conservation action by 2030.
Fire management for biodiversity conservation: Key research questions and our capacity to answer them
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2010
Use of surrogate species to cost-effectively prioritize conservation actions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-12-2020
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13430
Endogenous nitric oxide generation in protoplast chloroplasts
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 13-09-2012
DOI: 10.1007/S00299-012-1338-5
Abstract: KEY MESSAGE : NO generation is studied in the protoplast chloroplasts. NO, ONOO ( - ) and ROS (O ( 2 ) ( - ) and H ( 2 ) O ( 2 ) ) are generated in chloroplasts. Nitric oxide synthase-like protein appears to be involved in NO generation. Nitric oxide stimulates chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast differentiation. The present study was conducted to better understand the process of NO generation in the leaf chloroplasts and protoplasts. NO, peroxynitrite and superoxide anion were investigated in the protoplasts and isolated chloroplasts using specific dyes, confocal laser scanning and light microscopy. The level of NO was highest after protoplast isolation and subsequently decreased during culture. Suppression of NO signal in the presence of PTIO, suggests that diaminofluorescein-2 diacetate (DAF-2DA) detected NO. Detection of peroxynitrite, a reaction product of NO and superoxide anion, further suggests NO generation. Moreover, generation of NO and peroxynitrite in the chloroplasts of wild-type Arabidopsis and their absence or weak signals in the leaf-derived protoplasts of Atnoa1 mutants confirmed the reactivity of DAF-2DA and aminophenyl fluorescein to NO and peroxynitrite, respectively. Isolated chloroplasts also showed signal of NO. Suppression of NO signal in the presence of 100 μM nitric oxide synthase inhibitors [L-NNA, Nω-nitro-L-arginine and PBIT, S,S'-1,3-phenylene-bis(1,2-ethanediyl)-bis-isothiourea] revealed that nitric oxide synthase-like system is involved in NO synthesis. Suppression of NO signal in the protoplasts isolated in the presence of cycloheximide suggests de novo synthesis of NO generating protein during the process of protoplast isolation. Furthermore, the lack of inhibition of NO production by sodium tungstate (250 μM) and inhibition by L-NNA, and PBIT suggest involvement NOS-like protein, but not nitrate reductase, in NO generation in the leaf chloroplasts and protoplasts.
Barometer of Life: More Action, Not More Data
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 09-07-2010
Renewable energy development threatens many globally important biodiversity areas
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-03-2020
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.15067
Inter-ligand electronic coupling mediated through a dimetal bridge: dependence on metal ions and ancillary ligands
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2017
DOI: 10.1039/C6DT04679G
Abstract: The metal–metal bond orbitals and the ancillary ligands influence inter-ligand charge transfer through the dimetal bridge.
Agricultural intensification is causing rapid habitat change in the Tonle Sap Floodplain, Cambodia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-09-2020
Accommodating the human response for realistic adaptation planning: response to Gillson et al.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2013
Climate Change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2013
DOI: 10.1038/353496C0
The global potential for natural regeneration in deforested tropical regions
Publisher: Research Square Platform LLC
Date: 10-08-2023
DOI: 10.21203/RS.3.RS-3235955/V1
Abstract: Extensive forest restoration is a key strategy to meet nature-based sustainable development goals and provide multiple social and environmental benefits. Yet achieving forest restoration at scale requires cost-effective methods. Tree planting in degraded landscapes is a popular but costly forest restoration method, which often results in less bio erse forests when compared to natural regeneration techniques under similar conditions. Here, we assess the current spatial distribution of pantropical natural forest (from 2000-2016) and use this information to present the first model of the potential for natural regeneration across tropical forested countries and biomes at 30-meter spatial resolution. We estimate that 215 million hectares - an area greater than the entire country of Mexico - have potential for natural forest regeneration, representing an above-ground carbon sequestration potential of 23.4 Gt CO2 (range 21.1-25.7 Gt) over 30 years. Five countries (Brazil, Indonesia, China, Mexico, and Colombia) account for 52% of this estimated potential, showcasing the need for targeting restoration initiatives that leverage natural regeneration potential. Our results facilitate broader equitable decision-making processes that capitalise on the widespread opportunity for natural regeneration to help achieve national and global environmental agendas.
Mapping the Continuum of Humanity's Footprint on Land
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2019
Species' traits influenced their response to recent climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 13-02-2017
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE3223
Achieving Open Access to Conservation Science
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-08-2014
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12346
Mapping terrestrial anthropogenic degradation on the inhabited islands of the Galapagos Archipelago
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 09-10-2009
Phenotypic variability of distal 22q11.2 copy number abnormalities
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-06-2011
DOI: 10.1002/AJMG.A.34051
Abstract: The availability of microarray technology has led to the recent recognition of copy number abnormalities of distal chromosome 22q11.2 that are distinct from the better-characterized deletions and duplications of the proximal region. This report describes five unrelated in iduals with copy number abnormalities affecting distal chromosome 22q11.2. We report on novel phenotypic features including diaphragmatic hernia and uterine didelphys associated with the distal microdeletion syndrome and frontomedial polymicrogyria and callosal agenesis associated with the distal microduplication syndrome. We describe the third distal chromosome 22q11.2 microdeletion patient with Goldenhar syndrome. Patients with distal chromosome 22q11.2 copy number abnormalities exhibit inter- and intra-familial phenotypic variability, and challenge our ability to draw meaningful genotype-phenotype correlations.
The Location and Protection Status of Earth's Diminishing Marine Wilderness
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.CUB.2018.06.010
Abstract: As human activities increasingly threaten bio ersity [1, 2], areas devoid of intense human impacts are vital refugia [3]. These wilderness areas contain high genetic ersity, unique functional traits, and endemic species [4-7] maintain high levels of ecological and evolutionary connectivity [8-10] and may be well placed to resist and recover from the impacts of climate change [11-13]. On land, rapid declines in wilderness [3] have led to urgent calls for its protection [3, 14]. In contrast, little is known about the extent and protection of marine wilderness [4, 5]. Here we systematically map marine wilderness globally by identifying areas that have both very little impact (lowest 10%) from 15 anthropogenic stressors and also a very low combined cumulative impact from these stressors. We discover that ∼13% of the ocean meets this definition of global wilderness, with most being located in the high seas. Recognizing that human influence differs across ocean regions, we repeat the analysis within each of the 16 ocean realms [15]. Realm-specific wilderness extent varies considerably, with >16 million km
The role of different governance regimes in reducing native vegetation conversion and promoting regrowth in the Brazilian Amazon
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2022
A framework for systematic conservation planning and management of Mediterranean landscapes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2013
Countries’ differentiated responsibilities to fulfill area-based conservation targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2023
Editorial: Intact Forests
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 06-09-2021
Priorities for protected area expansion so nations can meet their Kunming‐Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework commitments
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-10-2023
DOI: 10.1002/INC3.24
Projected impact of future climate on drought patterns in complex rainfed environments
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2015
The impact of climate change and urban growth on urban climate and heat stress in a subtropical city
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-02-2019
DOI: 10.1002/JOC.5998
Reply to ‘Consider species specialism when publishing datasets’ and ‘Decision trees for data publishing may exacerbate conservation conflict’
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-02-2019
Catastrophic Declines in Wilderness Areas Undermine Global Environment Targets
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.CUB.2016.08.049
Abstract: Humans have altered terrestrial ecosystems for millennia [1], yet wilderness areas still remain as vital refugia where natural ecological and evolutionary processes operate with minimal human disturbance [2-4], underpinning key regional- and planetary-scale functions [5, 6]. Despite the myriad values of wilderness areas-as critical strongholds for endangered bio ersity [7], for carbon storage and sequestration [8], for buffering and regulating local climates [9], and for supporting many of the world's most politically and economically marginalized communities [10]-they are almost entirely ignored in multilateral environmental agreements. This is because they are assumed to be relatively free from threatening processes and therefore are not a priority for conservation efforts [11, 12]. Here we challenge this assertion using new comparable maps of global wilderness following methods established in the original "last of the wild" analysis [13] to examine the change in extent since the early 1990s. We demonstrate alarming losses comprising one-tenth (3.3 million km
Climate Velocity Can Inform Conservation in a Warming World
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2018.03.009
Abstract: Climate change is shifting the ranges of species. Simple predictive metrics of range shifts such as climate velocity, that do not require extensive knowledge or data on in idual species, could help to guide conservation. We review research on climate velocity, describing the theory underpinning the concept and its assumptions. We highlight how climate velocity has already been applied in conservation-related research, including climate residence time, climate refugia, endemism, historic and projected range shifts, exposure to climate change, and climate connectivity. Finally, we discuss ways to enhance the use of climate velocity in conservation through tailoring it to be more biologically meaningful, informing design of protected areas, conserving ocean bio ersity in 3D, and informing conservation actions.
Seeking convergence on the key concepts in ‘no net loss’ policy
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-07-2016
Mapping vulnerability and conservation adaptation strategies under climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-09-2013
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2007
Developing a national framework for dingo trophic regulation research in Australia: Outcomes of a national workshop
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 31-07-2009
Bold nature retention targets are essential for the global environment agenda
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-06-2018
Predicting the impact of logging activities on soil erosion and water quality in steep, forested tropical islands
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 04-2018
The Effect of Urban Density and Vegetation Cover on the Heat Island of a Subtropical City
Publisher: American Meteorological Society
Date: 11-2018
Abstract: The urban heat island (UHI) has a negative impact on the health of urban residents by increasing average temperatures. The intensity of the UHI effect is influenced by urban geometry and the amount of vegetation cover. This study investigated the impact of urban growth and loss of vegetation cover on the UHI in a subtropical city (Brisbane, Australia) during average and extreme conditions using the Conformal Cubic Atmospheric Model, run at a 1-km spatial resolution for 10 years. The average nighttime temperature increase was 0.7°C for the “Medium Density” urban growth scenario and 1.8°C for the “No Vegetation” scenario. During two widespread extreme heat events, the mean maximum increase in urban temperatures above the Control was between 2.2° and 3.8°C in the No Vegetation scenario and between 0.3° and 1.6°C in the Medium Density urban growth scenario. The results are similar to previous findings for temperate cities, with the intensity of the UHI effect higher at night and during winter than during the day and summer. Vegetation cover had the strongest impact on temperatures, more so than building height and height/width ratio. Maintaining and restoring vegetation, therefore, is a key consideration in mitigating the urban heat island. The large temperature increases found in this study, particularly during extreme heat events, shows the importance of reducing the UHI for protecting the health of urban residents, and this should be a priority in urban landscape planning and design.
Effective conservation requires clear objectives and prioritizing actions, not places or species
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 03-08-2015
Shortfalls in the global protected area network at representing marine biodiversity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-12-2015
DOI: 10.1038/SREP17539
Abstract: The first international goal for establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) to conserve the ocean’s bio ersity was set in 2002. Since 2006, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has driven MPA establishment, with 193 parties committed to protecting % of marine environments globally by 2020, especially ‘areas of particular importance for bio ersity’ (Aichi target 11). This has resulted in nearly 10 million km 2 of new MPAs, a growth of ~360% in a decade. Unlike on land, it is not known how well protected areas capture marine bio ersity, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of existing MPAs and future protection requirements. We assess the overlap of global MPAs with the ranges of 17,348 marine species (fishes, mammals, invertebrates) and find that 97.4% of species have % of their ranges represented in stricter conservation classes. Almost all (99.8%) of the very poorly represented species ( % coverage) are found within exclusive economic zones, suggesting an important role for particular nations to better protect bio ersity. Our results offer strategic guidance on where MPAs should be placed to support the CBD’s overall goal to avert bio ersity loss. Achieving this goal is imperative for nature and humanity, as people depend on bio ersity for important and valuable services.
A 2021 Horizon Scan of Emerging Global Biological Conservation Issues
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Zika Virus Infection of Human Iris Pigment Epithelial Cells
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 22-04-2021
DOI: 10.3389/FIMMU.2021.644153
Abstract: During recent Zika epidemics, adults infected with Zika virus (ZIKV) have developed organ-specific inflammatory complications. The most serious Zika-associated inflammatory eye disease is uveitis, which is commonly anterior in type, affecting both eyes and responding to corticosteroid eye drops. Mechanisms of Zika-associated anterior uveitis are unknown, but ZIKV has been identified in the aqueous humor of affected in iduals. The iris pigment epithelium is a target cell population in viral anterior uveitis, and it acts to maintain immune privilege within the anterior eye. Interactions between ZIKV and human iris pigment epithelial cells were investigated with infectivity assays and RNA-sequencing. Primary cell isolates were prepared from eyes of 20 cadaveric donors, and infected for 24 hours with PRVABC59 strain ZIKV or incubated uninfected as control. Cytoimmunofluorescence, RT-qPCR on total cellular RNA, and focus-forming assays of culture supernatant showed cell isolates were permissive to infection, and supported replication and release of infectious ZIKV. To explore molecular responses of cell isolates to ZIKV infection at the whole transcriptome level, RNA was sequenced on the Illumina NextSeq 500 platform, and results were aligned to the human GRCh38 genome. Multidimensional scaling showed clear separation between transcriptomes of infected and uninfected cell isolates. Differential expression analysis indicated a vigorous molecular response of the cell to ZIKV: 7,935 genes were differentially expressed between ZIKV-infected and uninfected cells (FDR & 0.05), and 99% of 613 genes that changed at least two-fold were up-regulated. Reactome and KEGG pathway and Gene Ontology enrichment analyses indicated strong activation of viral recognition and defense, in addition to biosynthesis processes. A CHAT network included 6275 molecular nodes and 24 contextual hubs in the cell response to ZIKV infection. Receptor-interacting serine/threonine kinase 1 (RIPK1) was the most significantly connected contextual hub. Correlation of gene expression with read counts assigned to the ZIKV genome identified a negative correlation between interferon signaling and viral load across isolates. This work represents the first investigation of mechanisms of Zika-associated anterior uveitis using an in vitro human cell model. The results suggest the iris pigment epithelium mounts a molecular response that limits intraocular pathology in most in iduals.
Wilderness
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2021
DOI: 10.1016/J.CUB.2021.07.041
Abstract: James Watson and Oscar Venter introduce the concept of wilderness and its role in conservation efforts.
Non-fatal injury in Thailand from 2005 to 2013: Incidence trends and links to alcohol consumption patterns in the Thai Cohort Study
Publisher: Japan Epidemiological Association
Date: 2016
The broad footprint of climate change from genes to biomes to people
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 11-11-2016
Abstract: Anthropogenic climate change is now in full swing, our global average temperature already having increased by 1°C from preindustrial levels. Many studies have documented in idual impacts of the changing climate that are particular to species or regions, but in idual impacts are accumulating and being lified more broadly. Scheffers et al. review the set of impacts that have been observed across genes, species, and ecosystems to reveal a world already undergoing substantial change. Understanding the causes, consequences, and potential mitigation of these changes will be essential as we move forward into a warming world. Science , this issue p. 10.1126/science.aaf7671
Determining ranges of poorly known mammals as a tool for global conservation assessment
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2021
Protected areas and the future of insect conservation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2022.09.004
Abstract: Anthropogenic pressures are driving insect declines across the world. Although protected areas (PAs) play a prominent role in safeguarding many vertebrate species from human-induced threats, insects are not widely considered when designing PA systems or building strategies for PA management. We review the effectiveness of PAs for insect conservation and find substantial taxonomic and geographic gaps in knowledge. Most research focuses on the representation of species, and few studies assess threats to insects or the role that effective PA management can play in insect conservation. We propose a four-step research agenda to help ensure that insects are central in efforts to expand the global PA network under the Post-2020 Global Bio ersity Framework.
Hotspots of human impact on threatened terrestrial vertebrates
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 12-03-2019
Three quarters of insects are insufficiently covered by protected areas
Publisher: Research Square Platform LLC
Date: 30-06-2022
DOI: 10.21203/RS.3.RS-1802901/V1
Abstract: Insects dominate the biosphere, driving ecosystem processes and functions that sustain humanity, yet insect populations are plummeting worldwide1. Massive conservation efforts will be needed to halt and reverse these declines2,3. Protected areas (PAs) could play a decisive role in safeguarding insect species from extinction4, but progress so far in achieving coverage of insect distributions by PAs remains undocumented. Here we show that 67,384 of 89,151 insect species assessed globally (76%) do not meet minimum target levels of PA coverage. Nearly 1,900 species from 225 families do not overlap with PAs at all. Species with low PA coverage predominantly occur in North America, Eastern Europe, South and Southeast Asia, and Australasia. The Post 2020 Global Bio ersity Framework5 provides a unique opportunity for nations to guide new PA designations that specifically take account of the needs of insects. Efforts to map important bio ersity areas now need to be upscaled to ensure nations capture and safeguard insect ersity.
An operational methodology to identify Critical Ecosystem Areas to help nations achieve the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 04-05-2023
DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.03.539215
Abstract: The Kunming-Montreal Global Bio ersity Framework (GBF) will become the most important multilateral agreement to guide bio ersity conservation actions globally over the coming decades. An ecosystem goal and various targets for maintaining integrity, restoring degraded ecosystems, and achieving representation in conservation areas feature throughout the GBF. Here, we propose an operational framework that combines disparate information on ecosystem type, extent, integrity, levels of protection, and risk of collapse to support the identification of irreplaceable ‘Critical Ecosystem Areas’ (CEAs), to help advance these ecosystem targets. The framework classifies each component ecosystem based on its integrity, importance in ensuring no ecosystem collapse and its relative value to achieving representation if protected. These CEAs are immediate conservation opportunities, given that they achieve multiple ecosystem goals and targets in the GBF. We showcase its application using Myanmar’s forested ecosystems as a case study and argue that it could be immediately used across all terrestrial ecosystems.
Intact ecosystems provide best defence against climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-01-2016
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2918
Essential indicators for measuring site‐based conservation effectiveness in the post‐2020 global biodiversity framework
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-02-2021
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12792
Abstract: Work on the post‐2020 global bio ersity framework is now well advanced and will outline a vision, goals, and targets for the next decade of bio ersity conservation and beyond. For the effectiveness of Protected areas and Other Effective area‐based Conservation Measures, an indicator has been proposed for “areas meeting their documented ecological objectives.” However, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has not identified or agreed on what data should inform this indicator. Here we draw on experiences from the assessment of protected area effectiveness in the CBD's previous strategic plan to provide recommendations on the essential elements related to bio ersity outcomes and management that need to be captured in this updated indicator as well as how this could be done. Our proposed protected area effectiveness indicators include a combination of remotely derived products for all protected areas, combined with data from monitoring of both protected area management and trends in species and ecosystems based on field observations. Additionally, we highlight the need for creating a digital infrastructure to operationalize national‐level data‐capture. We believe these steps are critical and urge the adoption of suitable protected area effectiveness indicators before the post‐2020 framework is agreed in 2021.
The contribution of predators and scavengers to human well-being
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-01-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-017-0421-2
Abstract: Predators and scavengers are frequently persecuted for their negative effects on property, livestock and human life. Research has shown that these species play important regulatory roles in intact ecosystems including regulating herbivore and mesopredator populations that in turn affect floral, soil and hydrological systems. Yet predators and scavengers receive surprisingly little recognition for their benefits to humans in the landscapes they share. We review these benefits, highlighting the most recent studies that have documented their positive effects across a range of environments. Indeed, the benefits of predators and scavengers can be far reaching, affecting human health and well-being through disease mitigation, agricultural production and waste-disposal services. As many predators and scavengers are in a state of rapid decline, we argue that researchers must work in concert with the media, managers and policymakers to highlight benefits of these species and the need to ensure their long-term conservation. Furthermore, instead of assessing the costs of predators and scavengers only in economic terms, it is critical to recognize their beneficial contributions to human health and well-being. Given the ever-expanding human footprint, it is essential that we construct conservation solutions that allow a wide variety of species to persist in shared landscapes. Identifying, evaluating and communicating the benefits provided by species that are often considered problem animals is an important step for establishing tolerance in these shared spaces.
Global terrestrial Human Footprint maps for 1993 and 2009
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-08-2016
Abstract: Remotely-sensed and bottom-up survey information were compiled on eight variables measuring the direct and indirect human pressures on the environment globally in 1993 and 2009. This represents not only the most current information of its type, but also the first temporally-consistent set of Human Footprint maps. Data on human pressures were acquired or developed for: 1) built environments, 2) population density, 3) electric infrastructure, 4) crop lands, 5) pasture lands, 6) roads, 7) railways, and 8) navigable waterways. Pressures were then overlaid to create the standardized Human Footprint maps for all non-Antarctic land areas. A validation analysis using scored pressures from 3114×1 km 2 random s le plots revealed strong agreement with the Human Footprint maps. We anticipate that the Human Footprint maps will find a range of uses as proxies for human disturbance of natural systems. The updated maps should provide an increased understanding of the human pressures that drive macro-ecological patterns, as well as for tracking environmental change and informing conservation science and application.
The relative importance of rainfall, temperature and yield data for a regional-scale crop model
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2013
Integrating human responses to climate change into conservation vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-2015
DOI: 10.1111/NYAS.12952
Abstract: The impact of climate change on bio ersity is now evident, with the direct impacts of changing temperature and rainfall patterns and increases in the magnitude and frequency of extreme events on species distribution, populations, and overall ecosystem function being increasingly publicized. Changes in the climate system are also affecting human communities, and a range of human responses across terrestrial and marine realms have been witnessed, including altered agricultural activities, shifting fishing efforts, and human migration. Failing to account for the human responses to climate change is likely to compromise climate-smart conservation efforts. Here, we use a well-established conservation planning framework to show how integrating human responses to climate change into both species- and site-based vulnerability assessments and adaptation plans is possible. By explicitly taking into account human responses, conservation practitioners will improve their evaluation of species and ecosystem vulnerability, and will be better able to deliver win-wins for human- and bio ersity-focused climate adaptation.
Reach and messages of the world's largest ivory burn
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-08-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13097
Abstract: Recent increases in ivory poaching have depressed African elephant populations. Successful enforcement has led to ivory stockpiling. Stockpile destruction is becoming increasingly popular, and most destruction has occurred in the last 5 years. Ivory destruction is intended to send a strong message against ivory consumption, both in promoting a taboo on ivory use and catalyzing policy change. However, there has been no effort to establish the distribution and extent of media reporting on ivory destruction events globally. We analyzed media coverage of the largest ivory destruction event in history (Kenya, 30 April 2016) across 11 nation states connected to ivory trade. We used an online-media crawling tool to search online media outlets and subjected 5 of the largest print newspapers (by circulation) in 5 nations of interest to content analysis. Most online news on the ivory burn came from the United States (81% of 1944 articles), whereas most of the print news articles came from Kenya (61% of 157 articles). Eighty-six to 97% of all online articles reported the burn as a positive conservation action, whereas 4-50% discussed ivory burning as having a negative impact on elephant conservation. Most articles discussed law enforcement and trade bans as effective for elephant conservation. There was more relative search interest globally in the 2016 Kenyan ivory burn than any other burn in 5 years. Ours is the first attempt to track the reach of media coverage relative to an ivory burn and provides a case study in tracking the effects of a conservation-marketing event.
Spatially explicit risk assessment of marine megafauna vulnerability to Indian Ocean tuna fisheries
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-05-2022
DOI: 10.1111/FAF.12676
Abstract: By‐catch is the most significant direct threat marine megafauna face at the global scale. However, the magnitude and spatial patterns of megafauna by‐catch are still poorly understood, especially in regions with very limited monitoring and expanding fisheries. The Indian Ocean is a globally important region for megafauna bio ersity and for tuna fisheries, but has limited by‐catch data. Anecdotal and scattered information indicates high by‐catch could be a major threat. Here, we adapt a Productivity Susceptibility Analysis tool designed for data‐poor contexts to present the first spatially explicit estimates of by‐catch risk of sea turtles, elasmobranchs, and cetaceans in the three major tuna fishing gears (purse seines, longlines, and drift gill nets). Our assessment highlights a potential opportunity for multi‐taxa conservation benefits by concentrating management efforts in particular coastal regions. Most coastal waters in the northern Indian Ocean, including countries that have had a minimal engagement with regional management bodies, stand out as high risk for fisheries interactions. In addition to species known to occur in tuna gears, we find high vulnerability to multiple gear types for many poorly known elasmobranchs that do not fall under any existing conservation and management measures. Our results indicate that current by‐catch mitigation measures, which focus on safe‐release practices, are unlikely to adequately reduce the substantial cumulative fishing impacts on vulnerable species. Preventative solutions that reduce interactions with non‐target species (such as closed areas or seasons, or modifications to gear and fishing tactics) are crucial for alleviating risks to megafauna from fisheries.
Principles for integrated island management in the tropical Pacific
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2014
DOI: 10.1071/PC140193
Abstract: We propose a new approach for island-wide planning and implementation of ecosystem management in the Pacific, recognizing a lack of replicability, sustainability and cost-effectiveness in other approaches. ʻIntegrated island managementʼ (IIM) operates through coordinated networks of institutions and communities focused on sustainable and adaptive management of natural resources. IIM enables simultaneous and cost-effective achievement of ecosystem-based management, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction while conserving bio ersity, maintaining ecosystem services and securing human health and well-being. We present ten guiding principles for IIM, and then use these to evaluate 36 case studies from the Pacific islands. Most case studies were pilot or demonstration projects with little evidence of planning to ensure long-term financial and human capacity needs were sustained, beyond the life of the projects, or could be replicated at significant scales. Management outcomes in the Pacific will be enhanced by: (1) building on foundations of customary management practice and social networks (2) working holistically across relevant ecological and governance scales, through coordinated but decentralized and nested institutions (3) empowering local communities to participate in integrated planning and implementation and (4) embedding IIM practice into national systems for long-term sustainability and replication. These also ultimately depend on the context and externalities, beyond the control of practitioners. Cost-effectiveness and appropriateness are also critical for successful IIM in the Pacific islands but ultimately there is little alternative for effective bio ersity conservation.
Patterns of for est loss in one of Africa's last remaining wilderness areas: Niassa national reserve (northern Mozambique)
Publisher: IUCN
Date: 30-11-2017
A Wilderness Approach under the World Heritage Convention
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-11-2015
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12205
Testing the effectiveness of surrogate species for conservation planning in the Greater Virunga Landscape, Africa
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Emerging evidence that armed conflict and coca cultivation influence deforestation patterns
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2019
Creating past habitat maps to quantify local extirpation of Australian threatened birds
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 02-2022
Abstract: Habitat loss is driving the extirpation of fauna across Earth. Many species are now absent from vast areas where they once occurred in inhabited continents, yet we do not have a good understanding of the extent to which different species have been locally extirpated, nor the degree to which range contractions and habitat loss has contributed to this local extirpation. Here, for the first time, we use a combination of scientific literature, historical sources, spatial data, and expert elicitation to map the past extent of potential habitats, and changes thereto, of 72 of Australia’s most imperiled terrestrial birds. By comparing the area of potential habitat within the past and current ranges of these taxa, we quantify the extent over which each of Australia’s threatened terrestrial birds have likely been extirpated and assess the amount and configuration of potential habitat that remains. Our results show that since 1750 (before European colonization), at least one extant taxon of threatened bird has disappeared from over 530 million hectares (69%) of Australia, through both range contractions and loss of potentially suitable habitat (noting these are not mutually exclusive phenomena). Ten taxa (14%) have likely been extirpated from % of their past potential habitat. For 56 taxa (78%), remaining habitat within their current potential habitats has become fragmented. This research paints a sobering picture of the extent of local extirpation of threatened birds from much of Australia over a 250 years time period. By mapping and quantifying this loss, these findings will help refine scientific understanding about the impact of habitat removal and other pervasive threats that are driving this observed extirpation.
Efficient expansion of global protected areas requires simultaneous planning for species and ecosystems
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 04-2015
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.150107
Abstract: The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)'s strategic plan advocates the use of environmental surrogates, such as ecosystems, as a basis for planning where new protected areas should be placed. However, the efficiency and effectiveness of this ecosystem-based planning approach to adequately capture threatened species in protected area networks is unknown. We tested the application of this approach in Australia according to the nation's CBD-inspired goals for expansion of the national protected area system. We set targets for ecosystems (10% of the extent of each ecosystem) and threatened species (variable extents based on persistence requirements for each species) and then measured the total land area required and opportunity cost of meeting those targets independently, sequentially and simultaneously. We discover that an ecosystem-based approach will not ensure the adequate representation of threatened species in protected areas. Planning simultaneously for species and ecosystem targets delivered the most efficient outcomes for both sets of targets, while planning first for ecosystems and then filling the gaps to meet species targets was the most inefficient conservation strategy. Our analysis highlights the pitfalls of pursuing goals for species and ecosystems non-cooperatively and has significant implications for nations aiming to meet their CBD mandated protected area obligations.
REDD and PINC: A new policy framework to fund tropical forests as global 'eco-utilities'
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 11-2009
Trends and biases in the listing and recovery planning for threatened species: an Australian case study
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 18-10-2013
DOI: 10.1017/S003060531100161X
Abstract: Many countries rely on formal legislation to protect and plan for the recovery of threatened species. Even though the listing procedures in threatened species legislation are designed to be consistent for all species there is usually a bias in implementing the laws towards charismatic fauna and flora, which leads to uneven allocation of conservation efforts. However, the extent of bias in national threatened species lists is often unknown. Australia is a good ex le: the list of threatened species under the Environmental Protection and Biological Conservation Act has not been reviewed since 2000, when it was first introduced. We assessed how well this Act represents threatened species across taxonomic groups and threat status, and whether biases exist in the types of species with recovery plans. We found that birds, hibians and mammals have high levels of threatened species (12–24%) but 6% of all reptiles and plants and 0.01% of invertebrates and fish are considered threatened. Similar taxonomic biases are present in the types of species with recovery plans. Although there have been recent improvements in the representation of threatened species with recovery plans across taxonomic groups, there are still major gaps between the predicted and listed numbers of threatened species. Because of biases in the listing and recovery planning processes many threatened species may receive little attention regardless of their potential for recovery: a lost opportunity to achieve the greatest conservation impact possible. The Environmental Protection and Biological Conservation Act in Australia needs reform to rectify these biases.
Taming a Wicked Problem: Resolving Controversies in Biodiversity Offsetting
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 13-04-2016
Avifaunal responses to landscape-scale habitat fragmentation in the littoral forests of south-eastern Madagascar
Publisher: Springer US
Date: 2005
Conservation implications of ecological responses to extreme weather and climate events
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-12-2018
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12878
Identifying technology solutions to bring conservation into the innovation era
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-10-2019
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2111
Roles for scientific societies to engage with conservation policy
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-03-2018
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13092
Planning for Species Conservation in a Time of Climate Change
Publisher: InTech
Date: 06-09-2011
DOI: 10.5772/24920
How to halve the carbon and biodiversity impacts of biofuel-driven land-use change in Brazil
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2021
Temporally inter-comparable maps of terrestrial wilderness and the Last of the Wild
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-12-2017
Abstract: Wilderness areas, defined as areas free of industrial scale activities and other human pressures which result in significant biophysical disturbance, are important for bio ersity conservation and sustaining the key ecological processes underpinning planetary life-support systems. Despite their importance, wilderness areas are being rapidly eroded in extent and fragmented. Here we present the most up-to-date temporally inter-comparable maps of global terrestrial wilderness areas, which are essential for monitoring changes in their extent, and for proactively planning conservation interventions to ensure their preservation. Using maps of human pressure on the natural environment for 1993 and 2009, we identified wilderness as all ‘pressure free’ lands with a contiguous area ,000 km 2 . These places are likely operating in a natural state and represent the most intact habitats globally. We then created a regionally representative map of wilderness following the well-established ‘Last of the Wild’ methodology which identifies the 10% area with the lowest human pressure within each of Earth’s 60 biogeographic realms, and identifies the ten largest contiguous areas, along with all contiguous areas ,000 km 2 .
The impact of urbanization and climate change on urban temperatures: a systematic review
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-08-2017
A national framework for research on trophic regulation by the Dingo in Australia
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2009
DOI: 10.1071/PC090209
Abstract: There is increasing evidence that the Dingo Canis lupus dingo plays an important ecological role as a trophic regulator in Australian ecosystems. However, there is sufficient remaining uncertainty about the nature of this role as to hinder the development of effective management policies. This review defines strategic directions for future research on the trophic role of Dingoes by developing a national Dingo research framework. The framework aims to increase our knowledge of the influence that Dingoes have on the maintenance of bio ersity, thereby encouraging Dingo conservation and the refinement of current land-use practices. The framework begins by identifying four major bioclimatic zones across Australia that pose different questions and challenges for Dingo research. For each zone we construct a model that identifies major interactions between Dingoes and key prey or competitor species, and then used the models to identify key research needs, the possible advantages of maintaining Dingo populations within each zone, and ways to tease out unstudied interactions. Important questions identified in the review include the effects of Dingoes on native marsupial populations, vegetation communities, herbivore diets, the use of structural refugia by mesopredators, predator and prey behaviour, and the effect of habitat modification on these interactions. We briefly review legislative constraints and other factors, such as the ongoing hybridization of Dingo populations with domestic dog breeds, that may impede future studies. If research activities follow this framework, we believe that policy and management will be better informed, benefiting both the Dingo and the natural ecosystems and production systems where it occurs.
Spending to save: What will it cost to halt Australia's extinction crisis?
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12682
Alcohol consumption patterns in Thailand and their relationship with non-communicable disease
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2015
Spurious thresholds in the relationship between species richness and vegetation cover
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-08-2012
Major Conservation Policy Issues for Biodiversity in Oceania
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-07-2009
DOI: 10.1111/J.1523-1739.2009.01287.X
Abstract: Oceania is a erse region encompassing Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, New Zealand, and Polynesia, and it contains six of the world's 39 hotspots of ersity. It has a poor record for extinctions, particularly for birds on islands and mammals. Major causes include habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, and overexploitation. We identified six major threatening processes (habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, climate change, overexploitation, pollution, and disease) based on a comprehensive review of the literature and for each developed a set of conservation policies. Many policies reflect the urgent need to deal with the effects of burgeoning human populations (expected to increase significantly in the region) on bio ersity. There is considerable difference in resources for conservation, including people and available scientific information, which are heavily biased toward more developed countries in Oceania. Most scientific publications analyzed for four threats (habitat loss, invasive species, overexploitation, and pollution) are from developed countries: 88.6% of Web of Science publications were from Australia (53.7%), New Zealand (24.3%), and Hawaiian Islands (10.5%). Many island states have limited resources or expertise. Even countries that do (e.g., Australia, New Zealand) have ongoing and emerging significant challenges, particularly with the interactive effects of climate change. Oceania will require the implementation of effective policies for conservation if the region's poor record on extinctions is not to continue.
A Call for International Leadership and Coordination to Realize the Potential of Conservation Technology
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 04-09-2019
Abstract: Advancing technology represents an unprecedented opportunity to enhance our capacity to conserve the Earth's bio ersity. However, this great potential is failing to materialize and rarely endures. We contend that unleashing the power of technology for conservation requires an internationally coordinated strategy that connects the conservation community and policy-makers with technologists. We argue an international conservation technology entity could (1) provide vision and leadership, (2) coordinate and deliver key services necessary to ensure translation from innovation to effective deployment and use of technology for on-the-ground conservation across the planet, and (3) help integrate innovation into bio ersity conservation policy from local to global scales, providing tools to monitor outcomes of conservation action and progress towards national and international bio ersity targets. This proposed entity could take the shape of an international alliance of conservation institutions or a formal intergovernmental institution. Active and targeted uptake of emerging technology can help society achieve bio ersity conservation goals.
Change in terrestrial human footprint drives continued loss of intact ecosystems
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 05-05-2020
DOI: 10.1101/2020.05.04.077818
Abstract: Our ability to map humanity’s influence across Earth has evolved, thanks to powerful computing, a network of earth observing satellites, and new bottom-up census and crowd-sourced data. Here, we provide the latest temporally inter-comparable maps of the terrestrial Human Footprint, and assessment of change in human pressure at global, biome, and ecoregional scales. In 2013, 42% of terrestrial Earth could be considered relatively free of anthropogenic disturbance, and 25% could be classed as ‘wilderness’ (the least degraded end of the human footprint spectrum). Between 2000 and 2013, 1.9 million km 2 - an area the size of Mexico - of land relatively free of human disturbance became highly modified. The majority of this occurred within tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannah, and shrubland ecosystems, but the rainforests of Southeast Asia also underwent rapid modification. Our results show that humanity’s footprint is eroding Earth’s last intact ecosystems, and greater efforts are urgently needed to retain them.
Land-use and climate risk assessment for Earth's remaining wilderness
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2022
DOI: 10.1016/J.CUB.2022.10.016
Abstract: Earth's wilderness areas are reservoirs of genetic information and carbon storage systems, and are vital to reducing extinction risks. Retaining the conservation value of these areas is fundamental to achieving global bio ersity conservation goals however, climate and land-use risk can undermine their ability to provide these functions. The extent to which wilderness areas are likely to be impacted by these drivers has not previously been quantified. Using climate and land-use change during baseline (1971-2005) and future (2016-2050) periods, we estimate that these stressors within wilderness areas will increase by ca. 60% and 39%, respectively, under a scenario of high emission and land-use change (SSP5-RCP8.5). Nearly half (49%) of all wilderness areas could experience substantial climate change by 2050 under this scenario, potentially limiting their capacity to shelter bio ersity. Notable climate (>5 km year
Forecasting ecosystem responses to climate change across Africa's Albertine Rift
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2017
The minimum land area requiring conservation attention to safeguard biodiversity
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 12-11-2019
DOI: 10.1101/839977
Abstract: More ambitious conservation efforts are needed to stop the global bio ersity crisis. Here, we estimate the minimum land area to secure important sites for terrestrial fauna, ecologically intact areas, and the optimal locations for representation of species ranges and ecoregions. We discover that at least 64 million km 2 (44% of terrestrial area) requires conservation attention. Over 1.8 billion people live on these lands so responses that promote agency, self-determination, equity, and sustainable management for safeguarding bio ersity are essential. Spatially explicit land-use scenarios suggest that 1.3 million km 2 of land requiring conservation could be lost to intensive human land-uses by 2030, which requires immediate attention. However, there is a seven-fold difference between the amount of habitat converted under optimistic and pessimistic scenarios, highlighting an opportunity to avert this crisis. Appropriate targets in the post-2020 Global Bio ersity Framework to ensure conservation of the identified land would contribute substantially to safeguarding bio ersity.
Matrix condition mediates the effects of habitat fragmentation on species extinction risk
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 02-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-022-28270-3
Abstract: Habitat loss is the leading cause of the global decline in bio ersity, but the influence of human pressure within the matrix surrounding habitat fragments remains poorly understood. Here, we measure the relationship between fragmentation (the degree of fragmentation and the degree of patch isolation), matrix condition (measured as the extent of high human footprint levels), and the change in extinction risk of 4,426 terrestrial mammals. We find that the degree of fragmentation is strongly associated with changes in extinction risk, with higher predictive importance than life-history traits and human pressure variables. Importantly, we discover that fragmentation and the matrix condition are stronger predictors of risk than habitat loss and habitat amount. Moreover, the importance of fragmentation increases with an increasing deterioration of the matrix condition. These findings suggest that restoration of the habitat matrix may be an important conservation action for mitigating the negative effects of fragmentation on bio ersity.
Renewal ecology: conservation for the Anthropocene
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-08-2017
DOI: 10.1111/REC.12560
Relationship between 8-year weight change, body size, and health in a large cohort of adults in Thailand
Publisher: Japan Epidemiological Association
Date: 10-2017
Open access solutions for biodiversity journals: Do not replace one problem with another
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12885
Filling in biodiversity threat gaps: Only 5% of global threat data sets meet a gold standard
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 22-04-2016
Abstract: Only 5% of global threat data sets meet a “gold standard”
Logging elevated the probability of high-severity fire in the 2019–20 Australian forest fires
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-04-2022
Functional and Phenotypic Characterisations of Common Syngeneic Tumour Cell Lines as Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer Models
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 16-03-2023
DOI: 10.3390/IJMS24065666
Abstract: Estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers (ER+ BCas) are the most common form of BCa and are increasing in incidence, largely due to changes in reproductive practices in recent decades. Tamoxifen is prescribed as a component of standard-of-care endocrine therapy for the treatment and prevention of ER+ BCa. However, it is poorly tolerated, leading to low uptake of the drug in the preventative setting. Alternative therapies and preventatives for ER+ BCa are needed but development is h ered due to a paucity of syngeneic ER+ preclinical mouse models that allow pre-clinical experimentation in immunocompetent mice. Two ER-positive models, J110 and SSM3, have been reported in addition to other tumour models occasionally shown to express ER (for ex le 4T1.2, 67NR, EO771, D2.0R and D2A1). Here, we have assessed ER expression and protein levels in seven mouse mammary tumour cell lines and their corresponding tumours, in addition to their cellular composition, tamoxifen sensitivity and molecular phenotype. By immunohistochemical assessment, SSM3 and, to a lesser extent, 67NR cells are ER+. Using flow cytometry and transcript expression we show that SSM3 cells are luminal in nature, whilst D2.0R and J110 cells are stromal/basal. The remainder are also stromal/basal in nature displaying a stromal or basal Epcam/CD49f FACS phenotype and stromal and basal gene expression signatures are overrepresented in their transcript profile. Consistent with a luminal identity for SSM3 cells, they also show sensitivity to tamoxifen in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, the data indicate that the SSM3 syngeneic cell line is the only definitively ER+ mouse mammary tumour cell line widely available for pre-clinical research.
Research is not immune to climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-02-2020
Reconsidering priorities for forest conservation when considering the threats of mining and armed conflict
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-04-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S13280-022-01724-0
Abstract: Many threats to bio ersity can be predicted and are well mapped but others are uncertain in their extent, impact on bio ersity, and ability for conservation efforts to address, making them more difficult to account for in spatial conservation planning efforts, and as a result, they are often ignored. Here, we use a spatial prioritisation analysis to evaluate the consequences of considering only relatively well-mapped threats to bio ersity and compare this with planning scenarios that also account for more uncertain threats (in this case mining and armed conflict) under different management strategies. We evaluate three management strategies to address these more uncertain threats: 1. to ignore them 2. avoid them or 3. specifically target actions towards them, first in idually and then simultaneously to assess the impact of their inclusion in spatial prioritisations. We apply our approach to the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and identify priority areas for conserving bio ersity and carbon sequestration services. We found that a strategy that avoids addressing threats of mining and armed conflict more often misses important opportunities for bio ersity conservation, compared to a strategy that targets action towards areas under threat (assuming a bio ersity benefit is possible). We found that considering mining and armed conflict threats to bio ersity independently rather than simultaneously results in 13 800–14 800 km 2 and 15 700–25 100 km 2 of potential missed conservation opportunities when undertaking threat-avoiding and threat-targeting management strategies, respectively. Our analysis emphasises the importance of considering all threats that can be mapped in spatial conservation prioritisation.
Moving from biodiversity offsets to a target-based approach for ecological compensation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-12-2020
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12695
Bring climate change back from the future
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-06-2016
DOI: 10.1038/534437A
Australia needs a wake-up call
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 03-03-2017
Growth‐inducing infrastructure represents transformative yet ignored keystone environmental decisions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12696
Area-based conservation in the twenty-first century
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-10-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41586-020-2773-Z
Abstract: Humanity will soon define a new era for nature-one that seeks to transform decades of underwhelming responses to the global bio ersity crisis. Area-based conservation efforts, which include both protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, are likely to extend and ersify. However, persistent shortfalls in ecological representation and management effectiveness diminish the potential role of area-based conservation in stemming bio ersity loss. Here we show how the expansion of protected areas by national governments since 2010 has had limited success in increasing the coverage across different elements of bio ersity (ecoregions, 12,056 threatened species, 'Key Bio ersity Areas' and wilderness areas) and ecosystem services (productive fisheries, and carbon services on land and sea). To be more successful after 2020, area-based conservation must contribute more effectively to meeting global bio ersity goals-ranging from preventing extinctions to retaining the most-intact ecosystems-and must better collaborate with the many Indigenous peoples, community groups and private initiatives that are central to the successful conservation of bio ersity. The long-term success of area-based conservation requires parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity to secure adequate financing, plan for climate change and make bio ersity conservation a far stronger part of land, water and sea management policies.
Being smart about SMART environmental targets
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 06-03-2015
Abstract: Focus on the negotiation process, not just the end target
Large seasonal and diurnal anthropogenic heat flux across four Australian cities
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 30-09-2016
Systematic Conservation Planning: Past, Present and Future
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-02-2011
Substantial losses in ecoregion intactness highlight urgency of globally coordinated action
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-11-2020
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12692
An Assessment of the Focal-Species Approach for Conserving Birds in Variegated Landscapes in Southeastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-10-2001
Erratum to: Species’ traits influenced their response to recent climate change (Nature Climate Change, (2017), 7, 3, (205-208), 10.1038/nclimate3223)
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-07-2017
The Spatial Distribution of Threats to Species in Australia
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 04-2011
Impact of 2019–2020 mega-fires on Australian fauna habitat
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-07-2020
Climate change, biodiversity conservation, and the role of protected areas: An australian perspective
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 11-2008
Timing of urbanisation and cardiovascular risks in thailand: Evidence from 51 936 members of the thai cohort study, 2005-2009
Publisher: Japan Epidemiological Association
Date: 2014
Preventing species extinctions resulting from climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-11-2014
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2455
Modelling the habitat of the endangered Carpentarian Grasswren (Amytornis dorotheae): The importance of spatio-temporal habitat availability in a fire prone landscape
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2020
Wilderness forms and their implications for global environmental policy and conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-04-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13875
Abstract: With the intention of securing industry‐free land and seascapes, protecting wilderness entered international policy as a formal target for the first time in the zero draft of the Post‐2020 Global Bio ersity Framework under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Given this increased prominence in international policy, it is timely to consider the extent to which the construct of wilderness supports global conservation objectives. We evaluated the construct by overlaying recently updated cumulative human pressure maps that offer a global‐scale delineation of industry‐free land as wilderness with maps of carbon stock, species richness, and ground travel time from urban centers. Wilderness areas took variable forms in relation to carbon stock, species richness, and proximity to urban centers, where 10% of wilderness areas represented high carbon and species richness, 20% low carbon and species richness, and 3% high levels of remoteness ( h), carbon, and species richness. Approximately 35% of all remaining wilderness in 2013 was accessible in h of travel time from urban centers. Although the construct of wilderness can be used to secure benefits in specific contexts, its application in conservation must account for contextual and social implications. The erse characterization of wilderness under a global environmental conservation lens shows that a nuanced framing and application of the construct is needed to improve understanding, communication, and retention of its variable forms as industry‐free places.
Nutrition label experience, obesity, high blood pressure, and high blood lipids in a cohort of 42,750 Thai adults
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 13-12-2017
A global biological conservation horizon scan of issues for 2023
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2023
Global rarity of intact coastal regions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-02-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13874
Abstract: Management of the land–sea interface is essential for global conservation and sustainability objectives because coastal regions maintain natural processes that support bio ersity and the livelihood of billions of people. However, assessments of coastal regions have focused strictly on either the terrestrial or marine realm. Consequently, understanding of the overall state of Earth's coastal regions is poor. We integrated the terrestrial human footprint and marine cumulative human impact maps in a global assessment of the anthropogenic pressures affecting coastal regions. Of coastal regions globally, 15.5% had low anthropogenic pressure, mostly in Canada, Russia, and Greenland. Conversely, 47.9% of coastal regions were heavily affected by humanity, and in most countries (84.1%) % of their coastal regions were degraded. Nearly half (43.3%) of protected areas across coastal regions were exposed to high human pressures. To meet global sustainability objectives, all nations must undertake greater actions to preserve and restore the coastal regions within their borders.
Projected impact of future climate on water-stress patterns across the Australian wheatbelt
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 25-11-2017
DOI: 10.1093/JXB/ERX368
Conservation: Stop misuse of biodiversity offsets
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-2015
DOI: 10.1038/523401A
Replacing underperforming protected areas achieves better conservation outcomes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 30-06-2010
DOI: 10.1038/NATURE09180
Abstract: Protected areas vary enormously in their contribution to conserving bio ersity, and the inefficiency of protected area systems is widely acknowledged. However, conservation plans focus overwhelmingly on adding new sites to current protected area estates. Here we show that the conservation performance of a protected area system can be radically improved, without extra expenditure, by replacing a small number of protected areas with new ones that achieve more for conservation. Replacing the least cost-effective 1% of Australia's 6,990 strictly protected areas could increase the number of vegetation types that have 15% or more of their original extent protected from 18 to 54, of a maximum possible of 58. Moreover, it increases markedly the area that can be protected, with no increase in overall spending. This new paradigm for protected area system expansion could yield huge improvements to global conservation at a time when competition for land is increasingly intense.
Interactions Between Biodiversity Offsets and Protected Area Commitments: Avoiding Perverse Outcomes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-01-2016
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12222
Author Correction: Climatic controls of decomposition drive the global biogeography of forest-tree symbioses
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-06-2019
DOI: 10.1038/S41586-019-1342-9
Abstract: In this Letter, a middle initial and additional affiliation have been added for author G. J. Nabuurs two statements have been added to the Supplementary Acknowledgements and a citation to the French National Institute has been added to the Methods see accompanying Author Correction for further details.
Poor ecological representation by an expensive reserve system: Evaluating 35 years of marine protected area expansion
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-06-2018
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12584
Threat-abatement framework confirms habitat retention and invasive species management are critical to conserve Australia's threatened species
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2023
I rarely read the label: Factors that Influence Thai Consumer Responses to Nutrition Labels
Publisher: Canadian Center of Science and Education
Date: 14-05-2016
DOI: 10.5539/GJHS.V8N1P21
Abstract: strong BACKGROUND: /strong This qualitative study employed the Knowledge-Attitude-Behaviour (KAB) model and Health Belief Model (HBM) to investigate factors influencing Thai consumer decision making about use of nutrition labels. Labels include both Nutrition Information Panels (1998-) and Guideline Daily Amounts labels (2011-). strong METHOD: /strong In-depth interviews were conducted with 34 participants representing two socio-demographic extremes in Thailand – “urban Bangkok” (university educated consumers) and “provincial Ranong” (non-university educated consumers). An integrated KAB-HBM model was used to devise in-depth interviews for a qualitative study using 20 open-ended questions and s les of food package labels. Additional questions arose from the interviews and they lasted 30-45 minutes and were video recorded. The analysis identified recurring themes using Atlas.ti software. strong RESULTS: /strong Most participants (n=25) were aware of nutrition labels but a much smaller number (n=10) used and derived any benefit from them. Nutrition label users were classified into 4 groups: A) competent user B) confused user C) aware non-user D) unaware non-user. Better educated participants were better at understanding nutrition labels but not more likely to use labels. Belief that nutrition influences health increased likelihood of using nutrition labels to make decisions about food. Being well-educated and motivated by health concerns increased likelihood of attention to nutrition labels. strong CONCLUSION: /strong Results are discussed with a view to increasing the use of nutrition labels by Thai consumers. Our findings, drawing on a combination of the KAB and HBM models, can contribute to strategies motivating consumers to use nutrition labels and can provide useful insights for developing promotional strategies.
Resolving conflicts in fire management using decision theory: asset-protection versus biodiversity conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2010
Retaining natural vegetation to safeguard biodiversity and humanity
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-03-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.14040
Abstract: Global efforts to deliver internationally agreed goals to reduce carbon emissions, halt bio ersity loss, and retain essential ecosystem services have been poorly integrated. These goals rely in part on preserving natural (e.g., native, largely unmodified) and seminatural (e.g., low intensity or sustainable human use) forests, woodlands, and grasslands. To show how to unify these goals, we empirically derived spatially explicit, quantitative, area‐based targets for the retention of natural and seminatural (e.g., native) terrestrial vegetation worldwide. We used a 250‐m‐resolution map of natural and seminatural vegetation cover and, from this, selected areas identified under different international agreements as being important for achieving global bio ersity, carbon, soil, and water targets. At least 67 million km 2 of Earth's terrestrial vegetation (∼79% of the area of vegetation remaining) required retention to contribute to bio ersity, climate, soil, and freshwater conservation objectives under 4 United Nations’ resolutions. This equates to retaining natural and seminatural vegetation across at least 50% of the total terrestrial (excluding Antarctica) surface of Earth. Retention efforts could contribute to multiple goals simultaneously, especially where natural and seminatural vegetation can be managed to achieve cobenefits for bio ersity, carbon storage, and ecosystem service provision. Such management can and should co‐occur and be driven by people who live in and rely on places where natural and sustainably managed vegetation remains in situ and must be complemented by restoration and appropriate management of more human‐modified environments if global goals are to be realized.
Avifaunal responses to habitat fragmentation in the threatened littoral forests of south‐eastern Madagascar
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-10-2004
A policy-driven framework for conserving the best of Earth’s remaining moist tropical forests
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-08-2020
Brokering Trust in Citizen Science
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 23-11-2019
Minimising the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in an intact landscape under risk of rapid agricultural development
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 2020
Abstract: As humanity’s demand for resources continues to rise and productive arable lands become increasingly scarce, many of Earth’s remaining intact regions are at heightened risk of destruction from agricultural development. In situations where agricultural expansion is inevitable, it is important to manage intact landscape transformation so that impacts on environmental values are minimised. Here, we present a novel, spatially explicit, land use planning framework that addresses the decision making needed to account for different, competing economic-environment objectives (agricultural production value, bio ersity conservation, ecosystem service retention) when land use change is inevitable within an intact landscape. We apply our framework to the globally significant savannahs of the Orinoquia (Colombia), which in a post-conflict era is under increased agricultural development pressure. We show that while negative environmental impacts can be reduced through planning, the total area of land converted to agriculture is the unavoidable principal driver of bio ersity and ecosystem service loss. We therefore identify planning solutions that perform well across all objectives simultaneously, despite trade-offs among them. When 15%, 20%, 30% and 40% of the study area is allowed to be converted to agriculture, on average planning can improve species persistence and ecosystem service retention by up to 16%, 15%, 12%, and 9%, respectively, when compared to agricultural-focused solutions. Development in the region so far has had an unnecessarily large impact on environmental objectives due to a lack of effective land use planning, creating an ‘opportunity debt’. Our study provides an evidence base to inform proactive planning and the development of environmentally sensible agricultural development policy and practice in the region. This framework can be used by stakeholders to achieve agriculture expansion goals and maximise economic profit while minimising impacts on the environment in the Orinoquia, or any relatively intact region that is being developed.
The essential role of other effective area-based conservation measures in achieving big bold conservation targets
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2018
Assessing species vulnerability to climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-02-2015
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2448
Response: Where Might We Find Ecologically Intact Communities?
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 04-03-2022
Title: Area requirements to safeguard Earth’s marine species
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 17-10-2019
DOI: 10.1101/808790
Abstract: Despite global policy commitments to preserve Earth’s marine bio ersity, many species are in a state of decline. Using data on 22,885 marine species, we identify 8.5 million km 2 of priority areas that complement existing areas of conservation and bio ersity importance. New conservation priorities are found in over half (56%) of all coastal nations, with key priority regions in the northwest Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean. We identify where different conservation actions, ranging from marine protected areas to broader policy approaches, may best overcome anthropogenic threats to these areas. This analysis shows 26-41% of the ocean (depending on targets used for species representation) needs to be effectively conserved through a combination of site-based actions and wider policy responses to achieve global conservation and sustainable development agendas. At least 26% of the ocean needs a combination of site-based conservation and wider policy responses to achieve global conservation goals.
Importance of species translocations under rapid climate change
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-10-2021
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13643
Abstract: Species that cannot adapt or keep pace with a changing climate are likely to need human intervention to shift to more suitable climates. While hundreds of articles mention using translocation as a climate‐change adaptation tool, in practice, assisted migration as a conservation action remains rare, especially for animals. This is likely due to concern over introducing species to places where they may become invasive. However, there are other barriers to consider, such as time‐frame mismatch, sociopolitical, knowledge and uncertainty barriers to conservationists adopting assisted migration as a go‐to strategy. We recommend the following to advance assisted migration as a conservation tool: attempt assisted migrations at small scales, translocate species with little invasion risk, adopt robust monitoring protocols that trigger an active response, and promote political and public support.
A Far More Ambitious Species Goal is Needed for the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 17-02-2020
DOI: 10.20944/PREPRINTS202002.0240.V1
Abstract: Urgent action is required to & lsquo bend the curve& rsquo on bio ersity loss. However, the & lsquo species goal& rsquo (Goal B) unveiled in the recently released Zero Draft of the Post-2020 Global Bio ersity Framework (GBF) is inadequate for mobilizing conservation actions to achieve the outcomes required to halt and reverse species declines. Here we examine the limitations of the goal as presented in the Zero Draft and propose a more ambitious goal for species. The conservation community must ensure that the species goal of the GBF captures what is actually needed from a species perspective for the Post-2020 Framework to achieve its 2030 mission & to put bio ersity on a path to recovery for the benefit of planet and people& , lest the mission be doomed from the start.
The human footprint represents observable human pressures: Reply to Kennedy et al.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-11-2020
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.14849
Abstract: The Human Modification map differs in important ways from the map of the human footprint, such as its mapping of widespread direct modification of much of the world's polar regions. An extensive validation reveals large inaccuracies in the Human Modification map, and that the human footprint tends to better represent actual observable human pressures on the ground. This article is a commentary on Kennedy et al., 25, 811-826 See also the Commentary on this article by Kennedy et al., 26, 333-336.
Saving species beyond the protected area fence: Threats must be managed across multiple land tenure types to secure Australia's endangered species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-01-2022
DOI: 10.1111/CSP2.617
Abstract: The main effort to secure threatened species globally is to set aside land and sea for their conservation via governance arrangements such as protected areas. But not even the biggest protected area estate will cover enough area to halt most species declines. Consequently, there is a need for assessments of how species habitats are distributed across the tenure landscape, to guide policy and conservation opportunities. Using Australia as a case study, we assess the relationship between land tenure coverage and the distributions of nationally listed threatened species. We discover that on average, nearly half (48%) of Australian threatened species' distributions occur on privately owned (freehold) lands, despite this tenure covering only 29% of the continent. In contrast, leasehold lands, which cover 38% of Australia, overlap with only 6% of species' distributions while protected area lands (which cover 20%) have an average of 35% of species' distributions. We found the majority (75% n = 1199) of species occur across multiple land tenures, and those species that are confined to a single tenure were mostly on freehold lands (13% n = 201) and protected areas (9% n = 139). Our findings display the opportunity to reverse the current trend of species decline with increased coordination of threat management across land tenures.
Opportunities and constraints for implementing integrated land-sea management on Islands
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 13-03-2017
DOI: 10.1017/S0376892917000091
Abstract: Despite a growing body of literature on integrated land–sea management (ILSM), very little critical assessment has been conducted in order to evaluate ILSM in practice on island systems. Here we develop indicators for assessing 10 integrated island management principles and evaluate the performance of planning and implementation in four island ILSM projects from the tropical Pacific across different governance structures. We find that where customary governance is still strongly respected and enabled through national legislation, ILSM in practice can be very effective at restricting access and use according to fluctuations in resource availability. However, decision-making under customary governance systems may be vulnerable to mismanagement. Government-led ILSM processes have the potential to design management actions that address the spatial scale of ecosystem processes and threats within the context of national policy and legislation, but may not fully capture broad stakeholder interests, and implementation may be poorly coordinated across highly dispersed island archipelagos. Private sector partnerships offer unique opportunities for resourcing island ILSM, although these are highly likely to be geared towards private sector interests that may change in the future and no longer align with community and/or national objectives. We identify consistent challenges that arise during island ILSM planning and implementation and offer recommendations for improvement.
Larger gains from improved management over sparing–sharing for tropical forests
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-01-2019
Changing trends and persisting biases in three decades of conservation science
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2017
Diverse contributions benefit people and nature.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-06-2019
One-third of global protected land is under intense human pressure.
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 18-05-2018
Abstract: In an era of massive bio ersity loss, the greatest conservation success story has been the growth of protected land globally. Protected areas are the primary defense against bio ersity loss, but extensive human activity within their boundaries can undermine this. Using the most comprehensive global map of human pressure, we show that 6 million square kilometers (32.8%) of protected land is under intense human pressure. For protected areas designated before the Convention on Biological Diversity was ratified in 1992, 55% have since experienced human pressure increases. These increases were lowest in large, strict protected areas, showing that they are potentially effective, at least in some nations. Transparent reporting on human pressure within protected areas is now critical, as are global targets aimed at efforts required to halt bio ersity loss.
Descriptions of the vocalisations of the Painted Button-quail Turnix varius in North Queensland
Publisher: BirdLife Australia, Ltd.
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.20938/AFO40111119
Abstract: The Painted Button-quail Turnix varius is a widespread and frequently encountered ground-dwelling bird endemic to Australia. Despite being regularly recorded throughout its distribution, our understanding of this species’ vocalisations is poor. Published accounts are limited to brief descriptions without quantitative analyses in a standardised format. This presents challenges in separating the vocalisations of this species from other similar species, particularly as vocalising button-quail are seldom observed. We recorded the vocalisations of Painted Button-quail from North Queensland. These vocalisations were identified as advertising ooms, drumming and contact calls. These vocalisation types appear analogous to those described for other button-quail species, though some key differences particularly in the advertising oom will likely prove diagnostic. Here we present descriptions and visual representations of each of these vocalisation types.
Importance of Indigenous Peoples’ lands for the conservation of Intact Forest Landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-01-2020
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2148
Data from: Global opportunities and challenges for transboundary cosnervation
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2020
Global correlates of range contractions and expansions in terrestrial mammals
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-06-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-16684-W
Abstract: Understanding changes in species distributions is essential to disentangle the mechanisms that drive their responses to anthropogenic habitat modification. Here we analyse the past (1970s) and current (2017) distribution of 204 species of terrestrial non-volant mammals to identify drivers of recent contraction and expansion in their range. We find 106 species lost part of their past range, and 40 of them declined by %. The key correlates of this contraction are large body mass, increase in air temperature, loss of natural land, and high human population density. At the same time, 44 species have some expansion in their range, which correlates with small body size, generalist diet, and high reproductive rates. Our findings clearly show that human activity and life history interact to influence range changes in mammals. While the former plays a major role in determining contraction in species’ distribution, the latter is important for both contraction and expansion.
Scientific foundations for an ecosystem goal, milestones and indicators for the post-2020 global biodiversity framework
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-08-2021
A manifesto for predictive conservation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2019
A metric for spatially explicit contributions to science-based species targets
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-02-2020
Aerial Imagery Analysis – Quantifying Appearance and Number of Sorghum Heads for Applications in Breeding and Agronomy
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 23-10-2018
Scenarios and Models to Support Global Conservation Targets
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2018.10.006
Abstract: Global bio ersity targets have far-reaching implications for nature conservation worldwide. Scenarios and models hold unfulfilled promise for ensuring such targets are well founded and implemented here, we review how they can and should inform the Aichi Targets of the Strategic Plan for Bio ersity and their reformulation. They offer two clear benefits: providing a scientific basis for the wording and quantitative elements of targets and identifying synergies and trade-offs by accounting for interactions between targets and the actions needed to achieve them. The capacity of scenarios and models to address complexity makes them invaluable for developing meaningful targets and policy, and improving conservation outcomes.
Telecoupled environmental impacts are an obstacle to meeting the sustainable development goals
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-07-2021
DOI: 10.1002/SD.2229
Abstract: International trade is responsible for connecting human and natural systems across distant countries, and has profound implications for sustainability. In particular, telecoupling, the socioeconomic and environmental interactions between distant countries as a result of, among others, global trade, typically leaves less affluent nations bearing the largest environmental impacts. Telecoupling effects are likely to be pervasive to those trying to achieve the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but little is known about how telecoupling affects the SDGs beyond a subset of environment‐related targets. Here, we take a broad global network analysis approach to address this gap, and assess the vulnerability of the SDGs' indicators and their interactions to telecoupling across 180 countries. We find that a majority (~78%) of the SDG indicators are significantly correlated ( p ‐value .05) to indicators of telecoupled environmental impacts, indicating that higher performing countries under SDGs indicators do so helped by externalizing their environmental impacts. We also find that, by proactively accounting for telecoupling, connectivity between goals is reduced in 11 of the 17 SDGs, reducing the trade‐offs between environmental‐related and development SDGs in developing countries. Our results reinforce the need for better integration of telecoupling when monitoring progress towards the SDGs for development to be truly sustainable and equitable.
Bolder science needed now for protected areas
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-01-2016
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12645
Abstract: Recognizing that protected areas (PAs) are essential for effective bio ersity conservation action, the Convention on Biological Diversity established ambitious PA targets as part of the 2020 Strategic Plan for Bio ersity. Under the strategic goal to "improve the status of bio ersity by safeguarding ecosystems, species, and genetic ersity," Target 11 aims to put 17% of terrestrial and 10% of marine regions under PA status by 2020. Additionally and crucially, these areas are required to be of particular importance for bio ersity and ecosystem services, effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative, and well-connected and to include "other effective area-based conservation measures" (OECMs). Whereas the area-based targets are explicit and measurable, the lack of guidance for what constitutes important and representative effective and OECMs is affecting how nations are implementing the target. There is a real risk that Target 11 may be achieved in terms of area while failing the overall strategic goal for which it is established because the areas are poorly located, inadequately managed, or based on unjustifiable inclusion of OECMs. We argue that the conservation science community can help establish ecologically sensible PA targets to help prioritize important bio ersity areas and achieve ecological representation identify clear, comparable performance metrics of ecological effectiveness so progress toward these targets can be assessed and identify metrics and report on the contribution OECMs make toward the target. By providing ecologically sensible targets and new performance metrics for measuring the effectiveness of both PAs and OECMs, the science community can actively ensure that the achievement of the required area in Target 11 is not simply an end in itself but generates genuine benefits for bio ersity.
Functional and genomic characterization of a xenograft model system for the study of metastasis in triple-negative breast cancer
Publisher: The Company of Biologists
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1242/DMM.032250
Abstract: Triple-negative breast cancer represents 10-20% of all human ductal adenocarcinomas and has a poor prognosis relative to other subtypes. Hence, new molecular targets for therapeutic intervention are necessary. Analyses of panels of human or mouse cancer lines derived from the same in idual that differ in their cellular phenotypes but not in genetic background have been instrumental in defining the molecular players that drive the various hallmarks of cancer. To determine the molecular regulators of metastasis in triple-negative breast cancer, we completed a rigorous in vitro and in vivo characterization of four populations of the MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer line ranging in aggressiveness from non-metastatic to spontaneously metastatic to lung, liver, spleen and lymph node. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array analyses and genome-wide mRNA expression profiles of tumour cells isolated from orthotopic mammary xenografts were compared among the four lines to define both cell autonomous pathways and genes associated with metastatic proclivity. Gene set enrichment analysis demonstrated an unexpected association between both ribosome biogenesis and mRNA metabolism and metastatic capacity. Differentially expressed genes or families of related genes were allocated to one of four categories, associated with either metastatic initiation (for ex le CTSC, ENG, BMP2), metastatic virulence (e.g. ADAMTS1, TIE1) metastatic suppression (e.g. CST1, CST2, CST4, CST6, SCNNA1, BMP4) or metastatic avirulence (e.g. CD74). Collectively, this model system based on MDA-MB-231 cells should be useful for the assessment of gene function in the metastatic cascade and also for the testing of novel experimental therapeutics for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer.
The Capacity of Australia's Protected-Area System to Represent Threatened Species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-2010
DOI: 10.1111/J.1523-1739.2010.01587.X
Abstract: The acquisition or designation of new protected areas is usually based on criteria for representation of different ecosystems or land-cover classes, and it is unclear how well-threatened species are conserved within protected-area networks. Here, we assessed how Australia's terrestrial protected-area system (89 million ha, 11.6% of the continent) overlaps with the geographic distributions of threatened species and compared this overlap against a model that randomly placed protected areas across the continent and a spatially efficient model that placed protected areas across the continent to maximize threatened species' representation within the protected-area estate. We defined the minimum area needed to conserve each species on the basis of the species' range size. We found that although the current configuration of protected areas met targets for representation of a given percentage of species' ranges better than a random selection of areas, 166 (12.6%) threatened species occurred entirely outside protected areas and target levels of protection were met for only 259 (19.6%) species. Critically endangered species were among those with the least protection 12 (21.1%) species occurred entirely outside protected areas. Reptiles and plants were the most poorly represented taxonomic groups, and hibians the best represented. Spatial prioritization analyses revealed that an efficient protected-area system of the same size as the current protected-area system (11.6% of the area of Australia) could meet representation targets for 1272 (93.3%) threatened species. Moreover, the results of these prioritization analyses showed that by protecting 17.8% of Australia, all threatened species could reach target levels of representation, assuming all current protected areas are retained. Although this amount of area theoretically could be protected, existing land uses and the finite resources available for conservation mean land acquisition may not be possible or even effective for the recovery of threatened species. The optimal use of resources must balance acquisition of new protected areas, where processes that threaten native species are mitigated by the change in ownership or on-ground management jurisdiction, and management of threatened species inside and outside the existing protected-area system.
Connectivity Conservation Management
Publisher: Routledge
Date: 09-02-2010
Progress in improving the protection of species and habitats in Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2016
Securing nonflagship species from extinction
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-04-2011
Retention and restoration priorities for climate adaptation in a multi-use landscape
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2019
The minimum land area requiring conservation attention to safeguard biodiversity.
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 03-06-2022
Abstract: Ambitious conservation efforts are needed to stop the global bio ersity crisis. In this study, we estimate the minimum land area to secure important bio ersity areas, ecologically intact areas, and optimal locations for representation of species ranges and ecoregions. We discover that at least 64 million square kilometers (44% of terrestrial area) would require conservation attention (ranging from protected areas to land-use policies) to meet this goal. More than 1.8 billion people live on these lands, so responses that promote autonomy, self-determination, equity, and sustainable management for safeguarding bio ersity are essential. Spatially explicit land-use scenarios suggest that 1.3 million square kilometers of this land is at risk of being converted for intensive human land uses by 2030, which requires immediate attention. However, a sevenfold difference exists between the amount of habitat converted in optimistic and pessimistic land-use scenarios, highlighting an opportunity to avert this crisis. Appropriate targets in the Post-2020 Global Bio ersity Framework to encourage conservation of the identified land would contribute substantially to safeguarding bio ersity.
Using anecdotal reports to clarify the distribution and status of a near mythical species: Australia’s Night Parrot (Pezoporus occidentalis)
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 22-06-2021
A review of specimens of Buff-breasted Button-quail Turnix olivii suggests serious concern for its conservation outlook
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-04-2022
Policy Options for the World's Primary Forests in Multilateral Environmental Agreements
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-08-2015
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12120
Food and nutrition labelling in Thailand: A long march from subsistence producers to international traders
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2015
Exploring the risks and benefits of flexibility in biodiversity offset location in a case study of migratory shorebirds
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-12-2023
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.14031
Abstract: Bio ersity offsets aim to counterbalance the residual impacts of development on species and ecosystems. Guidance documents explicitly recommend that bio ersity offset actions be located close to the location of impact because of higher potential for similar ecological conditions, but allowing greater spatial flexibility has been proposed. We examined the circumstances under which offsets distant from the impact location could be more likely to achieve no net loss or provide better ecological outcomes than offsets close to the impact area. We applied a graphical model for migratory shorebirds in the East Asian–Australasian Flyway as a case study to explore the problems that arise when incorporating spatial flexibility into offset planning. Spatially flexible offsets may alleviate impacts more effectively than local offsets however, the risks involved can be substantial. For our case study, there were inadequate data to make robust conclusions about the effectiveness and equivalence of distant habitat‐based offsets for migratory shorebirds. Decisions around offset placement should be driven by the potential to achieve equivalent ecological outcomes however, when considering more distant offsets, there is a need to evaluate the likely increased risks alongside the potential benefits. Although spatially flexible offsets have the potential to provide more cost‐effective bio ersity outcomes and more cobenefits, our case study showed the difficulty of demonstrating these benefits in practice and the potential risks that need to be considered to ensure effective offset placement.
Author Correction: Area-based conservation in the twenty-first century (Nature, (2020), 586, 7828, (217-227), 10.1038/s41586-020-2773-z)
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-11-2020
Global humid tropics forest structural condition and forest structural integrity maps
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-10-2019
DOI: 10.1038/S41597-019-0214-3
Abstract: Remotely sensed maps of global forest extent are widely used for conservation assessment and planning. Yet, there is increasing recognition that these efforts must now include elements of forest quality for bio ersity and ecosystem services. Such data are not yet available globally. Here we introduce two data products, the Forest Structural Condition Index (SCI) and the Forest Structural Integrity Index (FSII), to meet this need for the humid tropics. The SCI integrates canopy height, tree cover, and time since disturbance to distinguish short, open-canopy, or recently deforested stands from tall, closed-canopy, older stands typical of primary forest. The SCI was validated against estimates of foliage height ersity derived from airborne lidar. The FSII overlays a global index of human pressure on SCI to identify structurally complex forests with low human pressure, likely the most valuable for maintaining bio ersity and ecosystem services. These products represent an important step in maturation from conservation focus on forest extent to forest stands that should be considered “best of the last” in international policy settings.
Local conditions and policy design determine whether ecological compensation can achieve No Net Loss goals
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-04-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-15861-1
Abstract: Many nations use ecological compensation policies to address negative impacts of development projects and achieve No Net Loss (NNL) of bio ersity and ecosystem services. Yet, failures are widely reported. We use spatial simulation models to quantify potential net impacts of alternative compensation policies on bio ersity (indicated by native vegetation) and two ecosystem services (carbon storage, sediment retention) across four case studies (in Australia, Brazil, Indonesia, Mozambique). No policy achieves NNL of bio ersity in any case study. Two factors limit their potential success: the land available for compensation (existing vegetation to protect or cleared land to restore), and expected counterfactual bio ersity losses (unregulated vegetation clearing). Compensation also fails to slow regional bio ersity declines because policies regulate only a subset of sectors, and expanding policy scope requires more land than is available for compensation activities. Avoidance of impacts remains essential in achieving NNL goals, particularly once opportunities for compensation are exhausted.
Improved management is more important than sparing-sharing strategies for tropical forests
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.5063/F1GX48S7
The importance of Indigenous Peoples’ lands for the conservation of terrestrial vertebrates
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 12-12-2019
DOI: 10.1101/2019.12.11.873695
Abstract: Indigenous Peoples’ lands cover over one-quarter of the Earth’s surface, a significant proportion of which is still free from industrial-level human impacts. As a result, Indigenous Peoples’ lands are crucial for the long-term persistence of Earth’s bio ersity and ecosystem services. Yet, information on species composition within Indigenous Peoples’ lands globally remains unknown. Here, we provide the first comprehensive analysis of terrestrial vertebrate composition across mapped Indigenous lands by using distribution range data for 20,328 IUCN-assessed mammal, bird and hibian species. We estimate that 12,521 species (62%) have ≥10% of their ranges in Indigenous Peoples’ lands, and 3,314 species (16%) have half of their ranges within these lands. For threatened species assessed, 1,878 (41.5% of all threatened of all threatened mammals, birds and hibians) occur in Indigenous Peoples’ lands. We also find that 3,989 species (of which 418 are threatened) have ≥10% of their range in Indigenous Peoples’ lands that have low human pressure. Our results are conservative because not all known Indigenous lands are mapped, and this analysis shows how important Indigenous Peoples’ lands are for the successful implementation of international conservation and sustainable development agendas.
Efficiently targeting resources to deter illegal activities in protected areas
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-02-2014
Vulnerability of cloud forest reserves in Mexico to climate change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-03-2008
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE1453
Set ambitious goals for biodiversity and sustainability
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 23-10-2020
Abstract: Multiple, coordinated goals and holistic actions are critical
A horizon scan of global biological conservation issues for 2022
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2021.10.014
Abstract: We present the results of our 13th annual horizon scan of issues likely to impact on bio ersity conservation. Issues are either novel within the biological conservation sector or could cause a substantial step-change in impact, either globally or regionally. Our global panel of 26 scientists and practitioners identified 15 issues that we believe to represent the highest priorities for tracking and action. Many of the issues we identified, including the impact of satellite megaconstellations and the use of long-distance wireless energy transfer, have both elements of threats and emerging opportunities. A recent state-sponsored application to commence deep-sea mining represents a significant step-change in impact. We hope that this horizon scan will increase research and policy attention on the highlighted issues.
FGF13 promotes metastasis of triple‐negative breast cancer
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-02-2020
DOI: 10.1002/IJC.32874
Abstract: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents 10-20% of all human ductal adenocarcinomas and has a poor prognosis relative to other subtypes, due to the high propensity to develop distant metastases. Hence, new molecular targets for therapeutic intervention are needed for TNBC. We recently conducted a rigorous phenotypic and genomic characterization of four isogenic populations of MDA-MB-231 human triple-negative breast cancer cells that possess a range of intrinsic spontaneous metastatic capacities in vivo, ranging from nonmetastatic (MDA-MB-231_ATCC) to highly metastatic to lung, liver, spleen and spine (MDA-MB-231_HM). Gene expression profiling of primary tumours by RNA-Seq identified the fibroblast growth factor homologous factor, FGF13, as highly upregulated in aggressively metastatic MDA-MB-231_HM tumours. Clinically, higher FGF13 mRNA expression was associated with significantly worse relapse free survival in both luminal A and basal-like human breast cancers but was not associated with other clinical variables and was not upregulated in primary tumours relative to normal mammary gland. Stable FGF13 depletion restricted in vitro colony forming ability in MDA-MB-231_HM TNBC cells but not in oestrogen receptor (ER)-positive MCF-7 or MDA-MB-361 cells. However, despite augmenting MDA-MB-231_HM cell migration and invasion in vitro, FGF13 suppression almost completely blocked the spontaneous metastasis of MDA-MB-231_HM orthotopic xenografts to both lung and liver while having negligible impact on primary tumour growth. Together, these data indicate that FGF13 may represent a therapeutic target for blocking metastatic outgrowth of certain TNBCs. Further evaluation of the roles of in idual FGF13 protein isoforms in progression of the different subtypes of breast cancer is warranted.
Setting robust biodiversity goals
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 31-05-2021
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12816
Abstract: The new global bio ersity framework (GBF) being developed under the Convention on Biological Diversity must drive action to reverse the ongoing decline of the Earth's bio ersity. Explicit, measurable goals that specify the outcomes we want to achieve are needed to set the course for this action. However, the current draft goals and targets fail to set out these clear outcomes. We argue that distinct outcome goals for species, ecosystems, and genetic ersity are essential and should specify net outcomes required for each. Net outcome goals such as “no net loss” do, however, have a controversial history, and loose specification can lead to perverse outcomes. We outline seven general principles to underpin net outcome goal setting that minimize risk of such perverse outcomes. Finally, we recommend inclusion of statements of impact in action targets that support bio ersity goals, and we illustrate the importance of this with an ex le from the draft GBF action targets. These modifications would help reveal the specific contribution each action would make to achieving the outcome goals and provide clarity on whether the successful achievement of action targets would be adequate to achieve the outcome goals and, in turn, the 2050 vision: living in harmony with nature .
Using intrinsic and contextual information associated with automated signal detections to improve call recognizer performance: A case study using the cryptic and critically endangered Night Parrot
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-09-2020
Changes in human footprint drive changes in species extinction risk
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-11-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-018-07049-5
Abstract: Predicting how species respond to human pressure is essential to anticipate their decline and identify appropriate conservation strategies. Both human pressure and extinction risk change over time, but their inter-relationship is rarely considered in extinction risk modelling. Here we measure the relationship between the change in terrestrial human footprint (HFP)—representing cumulative human pressure on the environment—and the change in extinction risk of the world’s terrestrial mammals. We find the values of HFP across space, and its change over time, are significantly correlated to trends in species extinction risk, with higher predictive importance than environmental or life-history variables. The anthropogenic conversion of areas with low pressure values (HFP 3 out of 50) is the most significant predictor of change in extinction risk, but there are biogeographical variations. Our framework, calibrated on past extinction risk trends, can be used to predict the impact of increasing human pressure on bio ersity.
Potential negative consequences of geoengineering on crop production: A study of Indian groundnut
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 19-11-2016
DOI: 10.1002/2016GL071209
Renewable energy production will exacerbate mining threats to biodiversity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-17928-5
Abstract: Renewable energy production is necessary to halt climate change and reverse associated bio ersity losses. However, generating the required technologies and infrastructure will drive an increase in the production of many metals, creating new mining threats for bio ersity. Here, we map mining areas and assess their spatial coincidence with bio ersity conservation sites and priorities. Mining potentially influences 50 million km 2 of Earth’s land surface, with 8% coinciding with Protected Areas, 7% with Key Bio ersity Areas, and 16% with Remaining Wilderness. Most mining areas (82%) target materials needed for renewable energy production, and areas that overlap with Protected Areas and Remaining Wilderness contain a greater density of mines (our indicator of threat severity) compared to the overlapping mining areas that target other materials. Mining threats to bio ersity will increase as more mines target materials for renewable energy production and, without strategic planning, these new threats to bio ersity may surpass those averted by climate change mitigation.
To Achieve Big Wins for Terrestrial Conservation, Prioritize Protection of Ecoregions Closest to Meeting Targets
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2020
Widespread shortfalls in protected area resourcing undermine efforts to conserve biodiversity
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-05-2019
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2042
Identifying traits for genotypic adaptation using crop models
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 07-03-2015
DOI: 10.1093/JXB/ERV014
Abstract: Genotypic adaptation involves the incorporation of novel traits in crop varieties so as to enhance food productivity and stability and is expected to be one of the most important adaptation strategies to future climate change. Simulation modelling can provide the basis for evaluating the biophysical potential of crop traits for genotypic adaptation. This review focuses on the use of models for assessing the potential benefits of genotypic adaptation as a response strategy to projected climate change impacts. Some key crop responses to the environment, as well as the role of models and model ensembles for assessing impacts and adaptation, are first reviewed. Next, the review describes crop-climate models can help focus the development of future-adapted crop germplasm in breeding programmes. While recently published modelling studies have demonstrated the potential of genotypic adaptation strategies and ideotype design, it is argued that, for model-based studies of genotypic adaptation to be used in crop breeding, it is critical that modelled traits are better grounded in genetic and physiological knowledge. To this aim, two main goals need to be pursued in future studies: (i) a better understanding of plant processes that limit productivity under future climate change and (ii) a coupling between genetic and crop growth models-perhaps at the expense of the number of traits analysed. Importantly, the latter may imply additional complexity (and likely uncertainty) in crop modelling studies. Hence, appropriately constraining processes and parameters in models and a shift from simply quantifying uncertainty to actually quantifying robustness towards modelling choices are two key aspects that need to be included into future crop model-based analyses of genotypic adaptation.
Integrating social–ecological vulnerability assessments with climate forecasts to improve local climate adaptation planning for coral reef fisheries in Papua New Guinea
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-05-2016
Ecological Correlates and Conservation Implications of Overestimating Species Geographic Ranges
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-12-2007
DOI: 10.1111/J.1523-1739.2007.00847.X
Abstract: Species range maps based on extents of occurrence (EOO maps) have become the basis for many analyses in broad-scale ecology and conservation. Nevertheless, EOO maps are usually highly interpolated and overestimate small-scale occurrence, which may bias research outcomes. We evaluated geographical range overestimation and its potential ecological causes for 1158 bird species by quantifying EOO map occurrence across 4040 well-studied survey locations in Australia, North America, and southern Africa at the scale of 80-742 km2. Most species occurred in only 40-70% of the range indicated by their EOO maps. The observed proportional range overestimation affected the range-size frequency distribution, indicating that species are more range-restricted than suggested by EOO maps. The EOO maps most strongly overestimated the distribution of narrow-ranging species and ecological specialists with narrow diet and habitat breadth. These relationships support basic ecological predictions about the relationship between niche breadth and the fine-scale occurrence of species. Consequently, at-risk species were subject to particularly high proportional range overestimation, on average 62% compared with 37% of nonthreatened species. These trends affect broad-scale ecological analyses and species conservation assessments, which will benefit from a careful consideration of potential biases introduced by range overestimation.
The threats to Australia's imperilled species and implications for a national conservation response
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/PC18024
Abstract: Since European occupation of Australia, human activities have caused the dramatic decline and sometimes extinction of many of the continent’s unique species. Here we provide a comprehensive review of threats to species listed as threatened under Australia’s Environment Protection and Bio ersity Conservation Act 1999. Following accepted global categories of threat, we find that invasive species affect the largest number of listed species (1257 species, or 82% of all threatened species) ecosystem modifications (e.g. fire) (74% of listed species) and agricultural activity (57%) are also important. The ranking of threats was largely consistent across taxonomic groups and the degree of species’ endangerment. These results were significantly different (P& .01) from recent analyses of threats to threatened species globally, which highlighted overexploitation, agriculture and urban development as major causes of decline. Australia is distinct not only in the bio ersity it contains but also in the extent and mixture of processes that threaten the survival of these species. Notably, the IUCN threat classification scheme separates the numerous threats (e.g. urban development, agriculture, mining) that cause habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation, hence further research is required to quantify the net impact of these types of habitat change. We provide feasible suggestions for a more coordinated national approach to threatened species conservation, which could provide decision makers and managers at all levels with improved resources and information on threats and management. Adequate policy, legislative support and funding are critical for ensuring that on-ground management is successful in halting the decline of Australia’s threatened species.
Author Correction: The contribution of predators and scavengers to human well-being
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-03-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-018-0527-1
Abstract: In the version of this Review originally published, there were a number of errors that the authors wish to correct.
What are the barriers to successful community-based climate change adaptation? A review of grey literature
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 15-02-2019
Toward monitoring forest ecosystem integrity within the post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-2021
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12822
Abstract: Signatory countries to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) are formulating goals and indicators through 2050 under the post‐2020 Global Bio ersity Framework (GBF). Among the goals is increasing the integrity of ecosystems. The CBD is now seeking input toward a quantifiable definition of integrity and methods to track it globally. Here, we offer a schema for using Earth observations (EO) to monitor and evaluate global forest ecosystem integrity (EI). Our approach builds on three topics: the concept of EI, the use of satellite‐based EO, and the use of “essential bio ersity variables” to monitor and report on it. Within this schema, EI is a measure of the structure, function, and composition of an ecosystem relative to the range of variation determined by climatic–geophysical environment. We use evaluation criteria to recommend eight potential indicators of EI that can be monitored around the globe using Earth Observations to support the efforts of nations to monitor and report progress to implement the post‐2020 GBF. If operationalized, this schema should help Parties to the CBD take action and report progress on achieving ecosystem commitments during this decade.
Modification of forests by people means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 06-03-2020
DOI: 10.1101/2020.03.05.978858
Abstract: Many global environmental agendas, including halting bio ersity loss, reversing land degradation, and limiting climate change, depend upon retaining forests with high ecological integrity, yet the scale and degree of forest modification remains poorly quantified and mapped. By integrating data on observed and inferred human pressures and an index of lost connectivity, we generate the first globally-consistent, continuous index of forest condition as determined by degree of anthropogenic modification. Globally, only 17.4 million km 2 of forest (40.5%) have high landscape level integrity (mostly found in Canada, Russia, the Amazon, Central Africa and New Guinea) and only 27% of this area is found in nationally-designated protected areas. Of the forest in protected areas, only 56% has high landscape level integrity. Ambitious policies that prioritize the retention of forest integrity, especially in the most intact areas, are now urgently needed alongside current efforts aimed at halting deforestation and restoring the integrity of forests globally.
Global human influence maps reveal clear opportunities in conserving Earth’s remaining intact terrestrial ecosystems
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-06-2020
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.15109
Abstract: Leading up to the Convention on Biological Diversity Conference of the Parties 15, there is momentum around setting bold conservation targets. Yet, it remains unclear how much of Earth's land area remains without significant human influence and where this land is located. We compare four recent global maps of human influences across Earth's land, Anthromes, Global Human Modification, Human Footprint and Low Impact Areas, to answer these questions. Despite using various methodologies and data, these different spatial assessments independently estimate similar percentages of the Earth's terrestrial surface as having very low (20%–34%) and low (48%–56%) human influence. Three out of four spatial assessments agree on 46% of the non‐permanent ice‐ or snow‐covered land as having low human influence. However, much of the very low and low influence portions of the planet are comprised of cold (e.g., boreal forests, montane grasslands and tundra) or arid (e.g., deserts) landscapes. Only four biomes (boreal forests, deserts, temperate coniferous forests and tundra) have a majority of datasets agreeing that at least half of their area has very low human influence. More concerning, % of temperate grasslands, tropical coniferous forests and tropical dry forests have very low human influence across most datasets, and tropical grasslands, mangroves and montane grasslands also have % of land identified as very low influence across all datasets. These findings suggest that about half of Earth's terrestrial surface has relatively low human influence and offers opportunities for proactive conservation actions to retain the last intact ecosystems on the planet. However, though the relative abundance of ecosystem areas with low human influence varies widely by biome, conserving these last intact areas should be a high priority before they are completely lost.
The Emerging Threat of Extractives Sector to Intact Forest Landscapes
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 16-07-2021
Abstract: As demand for commodities increases globally, resource-rich countries are focal areas for industrial expansion. The extractives sector is driving unprecedented growth of infrastructure (e.g., roads, railways and pipelines) into sparsely populated regions, which contain some of the world’s remaining intact forests. Yet, the extent of the threat posed by an increased footprint of extractive industries is not well understood. Here we provide a novel global assessment of the potential threat posed to tropical Intact Forest Landscapes (IFLs), continuous patches of forest that have no remotely sensed signs of human activity or forest fragmentation, from the extractives sector including mining, oil and gas projects, using one of the most extensive global spatial datasets on extractives concessions to date. We found ∼20% of the global tropical IFL estate is designated as extractive’s concessions, presenting an enormous threat to these forests. Oil and gas concessions overlap with 408,000 km 2 of tropical IFLs (7.85% of total IFL area), with the biggest overlap in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Papua New Guinea. Mining concessions overlap with 589,000 km 2 (11.33%) of tropical IFL area, mainly in Brazil and Democratic Republic of Congo. As the majority of concessions overlapping IFLs are currently at the exploration stages for all types of extractives, now is the time to plan for reducing the potential threat through strategies such as identifying “no go” areas and applying the mitigation hierarchy. Nations and investors should undertake regional strategic environmental assessments to reduce impacts, including potential indirect and cumulative impacts of multiple projects and other threats in the landscape. We also call for banks that funders of extractives projects to apply global best practice industry environmental safeguards that recognize the value of intact forests and the risk of cumulative impacts to these unique sites.
Global status of and prospects for protection of terrestrial geophysical diversity
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-04-2015
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12502
Abstract: Conservation of representative facets of geophysical ersity may help conserve biological ersity as the climate changes. We conducted a global classification of terrestrial geophysical ersity and analyzed how land protection varies across geophysical ersity types. Geophysical ersity was classified in terms of soil type, elevation, and biogeographic realm and then compared to the global distribution of protected areas in 2012. We found that 300 (45%) of 672 broad geophysical ersity types currently meet the Convention on Biological Diversity's Aichi Target 11 of 17% terrestrial areal protection, which suggested that efforts to implement geophysical ersity conservation have a substantive basis on which to build. However, current protected areas were heavily biased toward high elevation and low fertility soils. We assessed 3 scenarios of protected area expansion and found that protection focused on threatened species, if fully implemented, would also protect an additional 29% of geophysical ersity types, ecoregional-focused protection would protect an additional 24%, and a combined scenario would protect an additional 42%. Future efforts need to specifically target low-elevation sites with productive soils for protection and manage for connectivity among geophysical ersity types. These efforts may be h ered by the sheer number of geophysical ersity facets that the world contains, which makes clear target setting and prioritization an important next step.
Bird community responses to habitat fragmentation: how consistent are they across landscapes?
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-06-2005
Climate-induced resource bottlenecks exacerbate species vulnerability: a review
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-05-2015
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12339
Set a global target for ecosystems
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-02-2020
Determining Crop Growth Dynamics in Sorghum Breeding Trials Through Remote and Proximal Sensing Technologies
Publisher: IEEE
Date: 07-2018
Extent and potential impact of hunting on migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2020
Degradation and forgone removals increase the carbon impact of intact forest loss by 626%
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 04-10-2019
Abstract: More complete accounting reveals how intact tropical forest loss plays a larger-than-realized role in exacerbating climate change.
Environmental destruction not avoided with the Sustainable Development Goals
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-06-2020
Why do we map threats? Linking threat mapping with actions to make better conservation decisions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-2015
DOI: 10.1890/140022
Priority Actions for Sustainable Forest Management in the International Year of Forests
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-05-2012
Laying Waste to Mercury: Inexpensive Sorbents Made from Sulfur and Recycled Cooking Oils
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 30-08-2017
Balancing Ecosystem and Threatened Species Representation in Protected Areas and Implications for Nations Achieving Global Conservation Goals
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-06-2016
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12268
Intense human pressure is widespread across terrestrial vertebrate ranges
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2020
Large-scale environmental degradation results in inequitable impacts to already impoverished communities: A case study from the floating villages of Cambodia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-02-2018
Communicating the true challenges of saving species: response to Wiedenfeld et al.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-06-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13961
Area Requirements to Safeguard Earth's Marine Species
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2020
Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-12-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-19493-3
Abstract: Many global environmental agendas, including halting bio ersity loss, reversing land degradation, and limiting climate change, depend upon retaining forests with high ecological integrity, yet the scale and degree of forest modification remain poorly quantified and mapped. By integrating data on observed and inferred human pressures and an index of lost connectivity, we generate a globally consistent, continuous index of forest condition as determined by the degree of anthropogenic modification. Globally, only 17.4 million km 2 of forest (40.5%) has high landscape-level integrity (mostly found in Canada, Russia, the Amazon, Central Africa, and New Guinea) and only 27% of this area is found in nationally designated protected areas. Of the forest inside protected areas, only 56% has high landscape-level integrity. Ambitious policies that prioritize the retention of forest integrity, especially in the most intact areas, are now urgently needed alongside current efforts aimed at halting deforestation and restoring the integrity of forests globally.
Australia faces environmental crisis
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 12-03-2021
Biodiversity Conservation in a Changing Climate: A Review of Threats and Implications for Conservation Planning in Myanmar
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-07-2013
Improving policy efficiency and effectiveness to save more species: A case study of the megadiverse country Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
Four steps for the Earth: mainstreaming the post-2020 global biodiversity framework
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Methylation of novel markers of fragile X alleles is inversely correlated with FMRP expression and FMR1 activation ratio
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 29-01-2010
DOI: 10.1093/HMG/DDQ037
Last chance for Madagascar’s biodiversity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-04-2019
Optimising global conservation, restoration, and agriculture for people and nature
Publisher: Research Square Platform LLC
Date: 18-09-2023
Leopards provide public health benefits in Mumbai, India
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-03-2018
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.1776
Incorporating climate change into spatial conservation prioritisation: A review
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2016
Shortfalls and Solutions for Meeting National and Global Conservation Area Targets
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-02-2015
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12158
Formulating Smart Commitments on Biodiversity: Lessons from the Aichi Targets
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-07-2016
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12278
Rapid and recent range collapse of Australia’s Red Goshawk Erythrotriorchis radiatus
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 19-02-2023
Trump: time to seize environmental gains
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-12-2016
DOI: 10.1038/540341C
Conservation birding: A quantitative conceptual framework for prioritizing citizen science observations
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Trade-offs in triple-bottom-line outcomes when recovering fisheries
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-08-2018
DOI: 10.1111/FAF.12240
Only ten percent of the global terrestrial protected area network is connected via intact land
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 29-01-2020
DOI: 10.1101/2020.01.28.920488
Abstract: Land free of direct anthropogenic disturbance is considered essential for achieving bio ersity conservation outcomes but is rapidly eroding. In response, many nations are increasing their protected area estates but little consideration is given to the context of the surrounding landscape. This is despite the fact that connectivity between protected areas is critical in a changing climate and mandated in international protected area targets. By utilizing the latest human pressure assessment, which shows that ∼40% of the terrestrial planet is still intact, and a connectivity method, we found just 9.7% of Earth’s terrestrial protected network can be considered ‘connected’. On average, 11% of each nation’s protected area estate is connected via intact land. As the global community commits to bolder action on abating bio ersity loss, only an increased focus on landscape-scale habitat retention and restoration efforts will ensure those critical areas safeguarded for conservation outcomes will remain (or become) connected. Only 9.7% of the global protected area network can be considered ‘connected’ by intact land.
The importance of littoral forest remnants for indigenous bird conservation in southeastern Madagascar
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2005
Woodland fragmentation is causing the decline of species and functional groups of birds in southeastern Australia
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2002
DOI: 10.1071/PC030261
Abstract: The clearance of woodlands and the simultaneous creation of alien environments have been identified as the primary reasons for the decline of many woodland birds in southeastern Australia. This study measured how the size of woodland remnants and habitat structural complexity affected bird composition and distribution in the northern Australian Capital Territory and bordering areas of New South Wales. Within this region only 8% of the original woodlands remain, embedded as patches in a matrix of pasture and suburbia. Woodland birds were surveyed in 72 woodland remnants of different size and vegetation structural complexity. Avifaunal species richness was found to increase with remnant area and habitat complexity (p 0.01). Of the 31 resident woodland bird species detected, 22 were significantly affected by woodland patch size reduction and 20 species were significantly affected by habitat complexity loss (p 0.05). Of the species affected, 19 were affected by both reductions in patch size and vegetation complexity. Seven species (Weebill, Brown Thornbill, Buff-rumped Thornbill, Spotted Pardalote, Grey Shrike-thrush, Scarlet Robin and White-winged Chough) not previously identified as threatened by habitat fragmentation occurred significantly less often in small remnants with low habitat complexity. Assessment of avifaunal guilds based on body size and foraging behaviour showed that all large species (n = 4) and 85% (n = 17) of insectivorous species that foraged above the ground were statistically affected by patch size and/or loss of habitat complexity. The occurrence of three species (50%) of granivores was also significantly affected (p 0.05) by patch size and/or habitat complexity reduction. These results show that the distribution of many bird species, including some considered "common" and "widespread", is affected by patch size and habitat complexity. There are few, large complex woodland remnants within the study area, which continue to reduce in size and complexity. It is therefore predicted that the decline of woodland bird species will continue unless appropriate habitat conservation strategies are applied.
Biodiversity targets after 2010
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2010
Optimal Protection of the World's Threatened Birds, Mammals, and Amphibians
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2016
From Publications to Public Actions: When Conservation Biologists Bridge the Gap between Research and Implementation
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 11-2010
Importance of equitable cost sharing in the Convention on Biological Diversity's protected area agenda
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-08-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13812
Opportunities for big data in conservation and sustainability
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-04-2020
Lots of loss with little scrutiny: The attrition of habitat critical for threatened species in Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-09-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CSP2.117
How to prioritize species recovery after a megafire
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-08-2022
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13936
Abstract: Due to climate change, megafires are increasingly common and have sudden, extensive impacts on many species over vast areas, leaving decision makers uncertain about how best to prioritize recovery. We devised a decision‐support framework to prioritize conservation actions to improve species outcomes immediately after a megafire. Complementary locations are selected to extend recovery actions across all fire‐affected species’ habitats. We applied our method to areas burned in the 2019−2020 Australian megafires and assessed its conservation advantages by comparing our results with outcomes of a site‐richness approach (i.e., identifying areas that cost‐effectively recover the most species in any one location). We found that 290 threatened species were likely severely affected and will require immediate conservation action to prevent population declines and possible extirpation. We identified 179 subregions, mostly in southeastern Australia, that are key locations to extend actions that benefit multiple species. Cost savings were over AU$300 million to reduce 95% of threats across all species. Our complementarity‐based prioritization also spread postfire management actions across a wider proportion of the study area compared with the site‐richness method (43% vs. 37% of the landscape managed, respectively) and put more of each species’ range under management (average 90% vs. 79% of every species’ habitat managed). In addition to wildfire response, our framework can be used to prioritize conservation actions that will best mitigate threats affecting species following other extreme environmental events (e.g., floods and drought).
Equipped to deal with uncertainty in climate and impacts predictions: lessons from internal peer review
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-08-2014
Global policy for assisted colonization of species
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 30-04-2021
Abstract: Coordinated policies are needed for the translocation of species for conservation
Publishing trends on climate change vulnerability in the conservation literature reveal a predominant focus on direct impacts and long time-scales
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-06-2014
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12234
Abstract: Over the past twelve years the number of papers that explore the impacts of climate change on bio ersity in the conservation literature has grown on average by 20% annually. By categorising these papers on their primary research questions, we show that the vast majority of these articles (88.6%) focus only on those impacts that arise directly as a result of climate change, ignoring the potentially significant indirect threats that arise from human adaptation responses. This pattern has remained fairly consistent throughout the review period (2000–2012), with a trend towards more articles considering both direct and indirect impacts towards the end of the period. We also find a bias in the time‐frames considered by published articles that project future impacts of climate change on bio ersity, with more than three‐quarters (77.9%) of papers only considering impacts after 2031, and almost half (49.1%) only considering impacts after 2051. This focus on long‐term, direct impacts creates a mismatch, not only with the life‐cycles of species and timescales of many ecological processes, but also with most management and policy timelines and the short‐term nature of human decision making processes. The focus on studying the long‐term, direct impacts of climate change on bio ersity is likely a function of the lack of availability of climate projections on shorter temporal scales a perception that short‐term impacts will be minor and, insufficient integration with the social and political sciences. While the direct impact of changes in mean climatic conditions will significantly change the biosphere by the end of the century, near term changes in seasonality and extreme events coupled with human adaptation responses are likely to have substantial impacts much sooner, threatening the survival of species and ecosystems. It is therefore essential that we balance our research efforts to facilitate a better understanding of these more imminent threats.
Considering the impact of climate change on human communities significantly alters the outcome of species and site-based vulnerability assessments
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-07-2015
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12355
Reconciling global priorities for conserving biodiversity habitat
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 21-11-2019
DOI: 10.1101/850537
Abstract: Degradation and loss of natural habitat is the major driver of the current global bio ersity crisis. Most habitat conservation efforts to date have targeted small areas of highly threatened habitat, but emerging debate suggests retaining large intact natural systems may be just as important. We reconcile these perspectives by integrating fine-resolution global data on habitat condition and species assemblage turnover, to identify Earth’s high-value bio ersity habitat. These are areas in better condition than most other locations once supporting a similar assemblage of species, and are found within both intact regions and human dominated landscapes. However, only 18.6 % of this high-value habitat is currently protected globally. Averting permanent bio ersity loss requires clear spatially explicit targets for retaining these unprotected high-value habitats.
The many meanings of no net loss in environmental policy
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-01-2018
Conservation in the face of climate change: Recent developments
Publisher: F1000 Research Ltd
Date: 28-10-2015
DOI: 10.12688/F1000RESEARCH.6490.1
Abstract: An increased understanding of the current and potential future impacts of climate change has significantly influenced conservation in practice in recent years. Climate change has necessitated a shift toward longer planning time horizons, moving baselines, and evolving conservation goals and targets. This shift has resulted in new perspectives on, and changes in, the basic approaches practitioners use to conserve bio ersity. Restoration, spatial planning and reserve selection, connectivity modelling, extinction risk assessment, and species translocations have all been reimagined in the face of climate change. Restoration is being conducted with a new acceptance of uncertainty and an understanding that goals will need to shift through time. New conservation targets, such as geophysical settings and climatic refugia, are being incorporated into conservation plans. Risk assessments have begun to consider the potentially synergistic impacts of climate change and other threats. Assisted colonization has gained acceptance in recent years as a viable and necessary conservation tool. This evolution has paralleled a larger trend in conservation—a shift toward conservation actions that benefit both people and nature. As we look forward, it is clear that more change is on the horizon. To protect bio ersity and essential ecosystem services, conservation will need to anticipate the human response to climate change and to focus not only on resistance and resilience but on transitions to new states and new ecosystems.
Estimating the benefit of well-managed protected areas for threatened species conservation
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 31-05-2020
DOI: 10.1017/S0030605317001739
Abstract: Protected areas are central to global efforts to prevent species extinctions, with many countries investing heavily in their establishment. Yet the designation of protected areas alone can only abate certain threats to bio ersity. Targeted management within protected areas is often required to achieve fully effective conservation within their boundaries. It remains unclear what combination of protected area designation and management is needed to remove the suite of processes that imperil species. Here, using Australia as a case study, we use a dataset on the pressures facing threatened species to determine the role of protected areas and management in conserving imperilled species. We found that protected areas that are not resourced for threat management could remove one or more threats to 1,185 (76%) species and all threats to very few (n = 51, 3%) species. In contrast, a protected area network that is adequately resourced to manage threatening processes within their boundary could remove one or more threats to almost all species (n = 1,551 c. 100%) and all threats to almost half (n = 740, 48%). However, 815 (52%) species face one or more threats that require coordinated conservation actions that protected areas alone could not remove. This research shows that investing in the continued expansion of Australia's protected area network without providing adequate funding for threat management within and beyond the existing protected area network will benefit few threatened species. These findings highlight that as the international community expands the global protected area network in accordance with the 2020 Strategic Plan for Bio ersity, a greater emphasis on the effectiveness of threat management is needed.
Defending the scientific integrity of conservation‐policy processes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-07-2017
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12958
Abstract: Government agencies faced with politically controversial decisions often discount or ignore scientific information, whether from agency staff or nongovernmental scientists. Recent developments in scientific integrity (the ability to perform, use, communicate, and publish science free from censorship or political interference) in Canada, Australia, and the United States demonstrate a similar trajectory. A perceived increase in scientific-integrity abuses provokes concerted pressure by the scientific community, leading to efforts to improve scientific-integrity protections under a new administration. However, protections are often inconsistently applied and are at risk of reversal under administrations publicly hostile to evidence-based policy. We compared recent challenges to scientific integrity to determine what aspects of scientific input into conservation policy are most at risk of political distortion and what can be done to strengthen safeguards against such abuses. To ensure the integrity of outbound communications from government scientists to the public, we suggest governments strengthen scientific integrity policies, include scientists' right to speak freely in collective-bargaining agreements, guarantee public access to scientific information, and strengthen agency culture supporting scientific integrity. To ensure the transparency and integrity with which information from nongovernmental scientists (e.g., submitted comments or formal policy reviews) informs the policy process, we suggest governments broaden the scope of independent reviews, ensure greater ersity of expert input and transparency regarding conflicts of interest, require a substantive response to input from agencies, and engage proactively with scientific societies. For their part, scientists and scientific societies have a responsibility to engage with the public to affirm that science is a crucial resource for developing evidence-based policy and regulations in the public interest.
Renewed threats to Brazilian biodiversity from sugarcane
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-2020
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2196
Observations on breeding Night Parrots (Pezoporus occidentalis) in western Queensland
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 28-02-2017
Replacing underperforming nature reserves
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Date: 21-12-2018
DOI: 10.1093/OSO/9780198808978.003.0023
Abstract: This chapter discusses a radical solution to the problem that many protected areas are not in the right places to achieve maximum conservation benefit. The radical solution involves replacing underperforming protected areas with new ones that achieve more for conservation. Such a system revision was successfully undertaken in Bhutan as long ago as 1993. This chapter argues that designing robust policies and processes around reserve replacement will (i) force a thorough assessment of the role of protected areas against a clear set of conservation objectives, (ii) upgrade a poorly performing system of protected areas into a system that achieves better conservation outcomes for the same, or even a lower, overall budget, and (iii) allow for sober, transparent, and effective decision-making when parts of existing protected areas are under threat from development.
Exotic species richness and native species endemism increase the impact of exotic species on islands
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-11-2012
Unveiling the environmental benefits of reducing sugar
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2020
Does the social equitability of community and incentive based conservation interventions in non-OECD countries, affect human well-being? A systematic review protocol
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2016
Mining and biodiversity: key issues and research needs in conservation science
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 05-12-2018
Abstract: Mining poses serious and highly specific threats to bio ersity. However, mining can also be a means for financing alternative livelihood paths that, over the long-term, may prevent bio ersity loss. Complex and controversial issues associated with mining and bio ersity conservation are often simplified within a narrow frame oriented towards the negative impacts of mining at the site of extraction, rather than posed as a series of challenges for the conservation science community to embrace. Here, we synthesize core issues that, if better understood, may ensure coexistence between mining and conservation agendas. We illustrate how mining impacts bio ersity through erse pathways and across spatial scales. We argue that traditional, site-based conservation approaches will have limited effect in preventing bio ersity loss against an increasing mining footprint, but opportunities to improve outcomes (e.g. through long-term strategic assessment and planning) do exist. While future mineral supply is uncertain, projections suggest demand will grow for many metals and shift mining operations towards more dispersed and bio erse areas. Initiating dialogue between mining companies, policy-makers and conservation organizations is urgent, given the suite of international agendas simultaneously requiring more minerals but less bio ersity loss.
Need to address gaps in global fisheries observation.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-01-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13265
Bias in protected-area location and its effects on long-term aspirations of biodiversity conventions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-11-2018
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12970
Abstract: To contribute to the aspirations of recent international bio ersity conventions, protected areas (PAs) must be strategically located and not simply established on economically marginal lands as they have in the past. With refined international commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity to target protected areas in places of "importance to bio ersity," perhaps they may now be. We analyzed location biases in PAs globally over historic (pre-2004) and recent periods. Specifically, we examined whether the location of protected areas are more closely associated with high concentrations of threatened vertebrate species or with areas of low agricultural opportunity costs. We found that both old and new protected areas did not target places with high concentrations of threatened vertebrate species. Instead, they appeared to be established in locations that minimize conflict with agriculturally suitable lands. This entrenchment of past trends has substantial implications for the contributions these protected areas are making to international commitments to conserve bio ersity. If protected-area growth from 2004 to 2014 had strategically targeted unrepresented threatened vertebrates, >30 times more species (3086 or 2553 potential vs. 85 actual new species represented) would have been protected for the same area or the same cost as the actual expansion. With the land available for conservation declining, nations must urgently focus new protection on places that provide for the conservation outcomes outlined in international treaties.
The New South Wales Priorities Action Statement and opportunities for maximizing return on investment for conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 30-04-2009
Toward reassessing data‐deficient species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-01-2017
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12850
Abstract: One in 6 species (13,465 species) on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List is classified as data deficient due to lack of information on their taxonomy, population status, or impact of threats. Despite the chance that many are at high risk of extinction, data-deficient species are typically excluded from global and local conservation priorities, as well as funding schemes. The number of data-deficient species will greatly increase as the IUCN Red List becomes more inclusive of poorly known and speciose groups. A strategic approach is urgently needed to enhance the conservation value of data-deficient assessments. To develop this, we reviewed 2879 data-deficient assessments in 6 animal groups and identified 8 main justifications for assigning data-deficient status (type series, few records, old records, uncertain provenance, uncertain population status or distribution, uncertain threats, taxonomic uncertainty, and new species). Assigning a consistent set of justification tags (i.e., consistent assignment to assessment justifications) to species classified as data deficient is a simple way to achieve more strategic assessments. Such tags would clarify the causes of data deficiency facilitate the prediction of extinction risk facilitate comparisons of data deficiency among taxonomic groups and help prioritize species for reassessment. With renewed efforts, it could be straightforward to prevent thousands of data-deficient species slipping unnoticed toward extinction.
A spatial overview of the global importance of Indigenous lands for conservation
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-07-2018
Towards pathways bending the curve terrestrial biodiversity trends within the 21st century
Publisher: International Institute Of Applied System Analysis
Date: 2018
Mining and conservation: implications for Madagascar's littoral forests
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2010
Wilderness areas halve the risk of extinction of terrestrial biodiversity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-09-2019
DOI: 10.1038/S41586-019-1567-7
Abstract: Reducing the rate of global bio ersity loss is a major challenge facing humanity
Manage forests as protection against warming
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2019
Gaps and opportunities for the World Heritage Convention to contribute to global wilderness conservation.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-12-2018
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12976
Abstract: Wilderness areas are ecologically intact landscapes predominantly free of human uses, especially industrial-scale activities that result in substantial biophysical disturbance. This definition does not exclude land and resource use by local communities who depend on such areas for subsistence and bio-cultural connections. Wilderness areas are important for bio ersity conservation and sustain key ecological processes and ecosystem services that underpin planetary life-support systems. Despite these widely recognized benefits and values of wilderness, they are insufficiently protected and are consequently being rapidly eroded. There are increasing calls for multilateral environmental agreements to make a greater and more systematic contribution to wilderness conservation before it is too late. We created a global map of remaining terrestrial wilderness following the established last-of-the-wild method, which identifies the 10% of areas with the lowest human pressure within each of Earth's 62 biogeographic realms and identifies the 10 largest contiguous areas and all contiguous areas >10,000 km
Improving reporting standards for polygenic scores in risk prediction studies
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-03-2021
Understanding the importance of small patches of habitat for conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-10-2016
Humid tropical vertebrates are at lower risk of extinction and population decline in forests with higher structural integrity.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-11-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-022-01915-8
Abstract: Reducing deforestation underpins global bio ersity conservation efforts. However, this focus on retaining forest cover overlooks the multitude of anthropogenic pressures that can degrade forest quality and imperil bio ersity. We use remotely sensed indices of tropical rainforest structural condition and associated human pressures to quantify the relative importance of forest cover, structural condition and integrity (the cumulative effect of condition and pressures) on vertebrate species extinction risk and population trends across the global humid tropics. We found that tropical rainforests of high integrity (structurally intact and under low pressures) were associated with lower likelihood of species being threatened and having declining populations, compared with forest cover alone (without consideration of condition and pressures). Further, species were more likely to be threatened or have declining populations if their geographic ranges contained high proportions of degraded forest than if their ranges contained lower proportions of forest cover but of high quality. Our work suggests that bio ersity conservation policies to preserve forest integrity are now urgently required alongside ongoing efforts to halt deforestation in the hyper erse humid tropics.
Global no net loss of natural ecosystems.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-12-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-019-1067-Z
Abstract: A global goal of no net loss of natural ecosystems or better has recently been proposed, but such a goal would require equitable translation to country-level contributions. Given the wide variation in ecosystem depletion, these could vary from net gain (for countries where restoration is needed), to managed net loss (in rare circumstances where natural ecosystems remain extensive and human development imperative is greatest). National contributions and international support for implementation also must consider non-area targets (for ex le, for threatened species) and socioeconomic factors such as the capacity to conserve and the imperative for human development.
Paracrine IL-6 Signaling Confers Proliferation between Heterogeneous Inflammatory Breast Cancer Sub-Clones
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 04-05-2022
Abstract: Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) describes a highly aggressive form of breast cancer of erse molecular subtypes and clonal heterogeneity across in idual tumors. Accordingly, IBC is recognized by its clinical signs of inflammation, associated with expression of interleukin (IL)-6 and other inflammatory cytokines. Here, we investigate whether sub-clonal differences between expression of components of the IL-6 signaling cascade reveal a novel role for IL-6 to mediate a proliferative response in trans using two prototypical IBC cell lines. We find that SUM149 and SUM 190 cells faithfully replicate differential expression observed in a subset of human IBC specimens between IL-6, the activated form of the key downstream transcription factor STAT3, and of the HER2 receptor. Surprisingly, the high level of IL-6 produced by SUM149 cells activates STAT3 and stimulates proliferation in SUM190 cells, but not in SUM149 cells with low IL-6R expression. Importantly, SUM149 conditioned medium or co-culture with SUM149 cells induced growth of SUM190 cells, and this effect was abrogated by the IL-6R neutralizing antibody Tocilizumab. The results suggest a novel function for inter-clonal IL-6 signaling in IBC, whereby IL-6 promotes in trans proliferation of IL-6R and HER2-expressing responsive sub-clones and, therefore, may provide a vulnerability that can be exploited therapeutically by repurposing of a clinically approved antibody.
Quantifying the relative irreplaceability of important bird and biodiversity areas
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-10-2016
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12609
Global Biodiversity Targets Require Both Sufficiency and Efficiency
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-2016
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12299
The exceptional value of intact forest ecosystems
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-02-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-018-0490-X
Abstract: As the terrestrial human footprint continues to expand, the amount of native forest that is free from significant damaging human activities is in precipitous decline. There is emerging evidence that the remaining intact forest supports an exceptional confluence of globally significant environmental values relative to degraded forests, including imperilled bio ersity, carbon sequestration and storage, water provision, indigenous culture and the maintenance of human health. Here we argue that maintaining and, where possible, restoring the integrity of dwindling intact forests is an urgent priority for current global efforts to halt the ongoing bio ersity crisis, slow rapid climate change and achieve sustainability goals. Retaining the integrity of intact forest ecosystems should be a central component of proactive global and national environmental strategies, alongside current efforts aimed at halting deforestation and promoting reforestation.
Sustainability: Root targets in consensus
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2014
DOI: 10.1038/514434D
Multi-Spectral Imaging from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Enables the Assessment of Seasonal Leaf Area Dynamics of Sorghum Breeding Lines
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 08-09-2017
Persistent Disparities between Recent Rates of Habitat Conversion and Protection and Implications for Future Global Conservation Targets
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-09-2016
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12295
Synergies between the key biodiversity area and systematic conservation planning approaches
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12625
A bold successor to Aichi Target 11−−Response
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 16-08-2019
Protected areas are now the last strongholds for many imperiled mammal species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-08-2020
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12748
Conservation implications and opportunities of mining activities for terrestrial mammal habitat
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-11-2022
DOI: 10.1111/CSP2.12806
Abstract: Mining companies increasingly commit to a net positive impact on bio ersity. However, assessing the industry's progress toward achieving this goal is limited by knowledge of current mining threats to bio ersity and the relevant opportunities available for them to improve conservation outcomes. Here, we investigate the global exposure of terrestrial mammal habitat to mining activities, revealing the 136 species with % of their habitat within 10 km of a mining property or exploration site. One third ( n = 42) of these species are already threatened with extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), suggesting projected increased demand for minerals may push some species beyond critical thresholds. Moreover, 28% ( n = 33) of species are Data Deficient, illustrating tangible ways for industry to fill current knowledge gaps. However, large discrepancies between our results and the species currently listed as threatened by mining in the IUCN Red List, suggest other species may be at risk and that conservation tools and analyses based on these data may underestimate the benefits of averting such threats. We recommend ways to better capture mining threats to species within IUCN Red List assessments and discuss how these changes could improve conservation outcomes in mineral‐rich areas.
A decision tree for assessing the risks and benefits of publishing biodiversity data
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-07-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-018-0608-1
Abstract: Inadequate information on the geographical distribution of bio ersity h ers decision-making for conservation. Major efforts are underway to fill knowledge gaps, but there are increasing concerns that publishing the locations of species is dangerous, particularly for species at risk of exploitation. While we recognize that well-informed control of location data for highly sensitive taxa is necessary to avoid risks, such as poaching or habitat disturbance by recreational visitors, we argue that ignoring the benefits of sharing bio ersity data could unnecessarily obstruct conservation efforts for species and locations with low risks of exploitation. We provide a decision tree protocol for scientists that systematically considers both the risks of exploitation and potential benefits of increased conservation activities. Our protocol helps scientists assess the impacts of publishing bio ersity data and aims to enhance conservation opportunities, promote community engagement and reduce duplication of survey efforts.
Recent Australian wildfires made worse by logging and associated forest management
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-05-2020
Nests and eggs of the Chestnut-backed Button-quail Turnix castanotus: Two new nests and a review of previous descriptions
Publisher: BirdLife Australia, Ltd.
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.20938/AFO39012018
Abstract: The Chestnut-backed Button-quail Turnix castanotus is a small, cryptic, ground-dwelling species endemic to savanna ecosystems of northern Australia. Due to aspects of its ecology, cryptic plumage and behaviour, and the remoteness of most of its distribution, there are few published observations from the field documenting its breeding biology. The eggs were first described in 1856 and have subsequently been described by other authors. Two nests were detected in the Northern Territory in March 2021. We compare nesting events there with previous descriptions and museum collections. Our findings are mostly consistent with other literature on this species, but are inconsistent with two contemporary accounts, which we suggest are based on misidentification of Painted Button-quail T. varius.
Best-practice forestry management delivers diminishing returns for coral reefs with increased land-clearing
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-09-2020
Change in Terrestrial Human Footprint Drives Continued Loss of Intact Ecosystems
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.2139/SSRN.3600547
Limitations and trade-offs in the use of species distribution maps for protected area planning
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-09-2017
Opportunities for biodiversity conservation as cities adapt to climate change
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1002/GEO2.52
What hope for biodiversity in the face of anthropogenic climate change in Oceania?
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1071/PC110166
Abstract: OVER the past five years, climate change has not only become the main priority for environment policy, it is influencing most spheres of public policy as understanding increases of the ramifications of global warming. Despite the importance of the issue, governments have struggled to reduce their carbon addiction because of the high dependencies of economies and social systems (e.g., jobs) on this one element. Industries aggressively protect their interests and the public debate is often debased by a media who, in the interests of so called balance, often set the issue up as one of disagreement among opposing scientific factions on anthropogenic climate change. A recent extensive analysis of 1 372 climate researchers and their publications and citation data showed that 97-98% supported the tenets of anthropogenic climate change, while the 2-3% of scientists that disagreed had a scientific status well below the majority (Anderegg et al. 2010). There is no balance here. Further, international frameworks for decision-making remain fractured with considerable inertia to reduce global emissions. Uncertainty over predictions of what the future will look like has become an increasingly easy reason for not making the necessary policy responses to deal with climate change. Some argue in the rich nations of Oceania (e.g., Australia) that local emissions policy detrimentally affects carbon dependent industries and makes little difference because they emit so little of the world’s carbon. This ignores the morale responsibility for leadership among the world’s worst emitters of carbon, on a per capita level. It also ignores the critical fact that the environments in our region of Oceania are increasingly the vanguard of those affected by sea level rise and other impacts of anthropogenic climate change and no action will lead to great suffering of those who need our help the most.
Wilderness and future conservation priorities in Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-10-2009
Protect Australia's Gondwana Rainforests
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 06-03-2020
A global assessment of current and future biodiversity vulnerability to habitat loss–climate change interactions
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Avoiding Unintended Outcomes from REDD
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-01-2010
Accounting for both automated recording unit detection space and signal recognition performance in acoustic surveys: A protocol applied to the cryptic and critically endangered Night Parrot (Pezopo
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-12-2021
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.13128
Abstract: Research into the suitability of autonomous recording units (ARUs) when surveying for vocal species is increasing. Simultaneously, there has been extensive research into methods for efficiently extracting signals of interest from the acoustic data sets that accrue from the deployment of ARUs. For some species, bioacoustic monitoring supported by computerised signal detection offers the only effective and efficient method for widespread survey. In these circumstances, the detection space of both the ARU and the performance of the signal detection process must be considered concurrently, but typically, these two elements have been considered separately. Here, using the Night Parrot ( Pezoporus occidentalis ) as a case study, we consider both ARU detection space and the signal detection process to develop a robust and repeatable survey protocol for the species. After developing a call recogniser for the Night Parrot, we test its performance on a data set of Night Parrot calls given at a known distance from an array of ARUs. Having established a relationship between ARU type, recogniser performance and distance, we determine the s ling radius of an ARU for a given recogniser score cut‐off, and the associated probability of detecting a Night Parrot that calls within that s ling radius. Using these data, we outline how to develop a robust and repeatable survey protocol for the Night Parrot, with a defined probability of detection. This protocol could be adapted for other scenarios where deployment of ARUs is necessary to determine a species’ status and distribution.
Talk is cheap: Nations must act now to achieve long-term ambitions for biodiversity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2021
Over half of threatened species require targeted recovery actions to avert human-induced extinction
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-07-2023
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2537
Eroded protections threaten US forests
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 20-11-2020
Biodiversity risks and safeguards of China’s hydropower investments in Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Countries
Publisher: Research Square Platform LLC
Date: 13-08-2021
DOI: 10.21203/RS.3.RS-778318/V1
Abstract: The imperative of a global transition to renewables to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 calls for an examination of the associated bio ersity risks. Hydropower is the biggest source of renewable energy globally, and its remaining untapped potential is concentrated in low and lower-middle income countries which are also among the world’s most bio erse. China has emerged as a major overseas financier of hydropower dams under its flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). We assess the bio ersity risk posed by proposed or under-construction hydropower dams being funded by China in BRI countries and compare it with that of dams being funded by Multi-lateral Development Banks (MDBs) – the other key overseas financiers of hydropower. We find that 48 hydropower dams are being financed by China in 18 BRI countries, likely impacting 14 free-flowing rivers and the ranges of 11 critically endangered freshwater fish species, and 130 km2 of critical terrestrial habitat(within a 1-km buffer distance). When compared to dams funded by MDBs, Chinese-funded dams are not located in riskier areas for bio ersity, but the total risk is higher due to their preponderance. We find that Chinese regulators and hydropower companies do not specify any enforceable bio ersity impact mitigation requirements. And while MDBs do specify binding safeguards, impacts on river connectivity do not form a part of the mitigation requirements, except in the case of the European Investment Bank (EIB). China is uniquely positioned to adopt a leadership role in specifying safeguards that will help BRI countries adopt an optimum renewable energy mix that minimizes bio ersity risks.
The extent and predictability of the biodiversity–carbon correlation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-01-2018
DOI: 10.1111/ELE.12903
Abstract: Protecting biomass carbon stocks to mitigate climate change has direct implications for bio ersity conservation. Yet, evidence that a positive association exists between carbon density and species richness is contrasting. Here, we test how this association varies (1) across spatial extents and (2) as a function of how strongly carbon and species richness depend on environmental variables. We found the correlation weakens when moving from larger extents, e.g. realms, to narrower extents, e.g. ecoregions. For ecoregions, a positive correlation emerges when both species richness and carbon density vary as functions of the same environmental variables (climate, soil, elevation). In 20% of tropical ecoregions, there are opportunities to pursue carbon conservation with direct bio ersity co-benefits, while other ecoregions require careful planning for both species and carbon to avoid potentially perverse outcomes. The broad assumption of a linear relationship between carbon and bio ersity can lead to undesired outcomes.
Bending the curve of terrestrial biodiversity needs an integrated strategy
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-09-2020
Reconciling global priorities for conserving biodiversity habitat
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 21-04-2020
Abstract: Degradation and loss of natural habitat is the major driver of the current global bio ersity crisis. Most habitat conservation efforts to date have targeted small areas of highly threatened habitat, but emerging debate suggests that retaining large intact natural systems may be just as important. We reconcile these perspectives by integrating fine-resolution global data on habitat condition and species assemblage turnover to identify Earth’s high-value bio ersity habitat. These are areas in better condition than most other locations predicted to have once supported a similar assemblage of species and are found within both intact regions and human-dominated landscapes. However, only 18.6% of this high-value habitat is currently protected globally. Averting permanent bio ersity loss requires clear, spatially explicit targets for retaining these unprotected high-value habitats.
Global opportunities and challenges for transboundary conservation
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-03-2020
Modeling the fitness of plant morphologies across three levels of complexity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOSYSTEMS.2008.05.023
Abstract: Linking together disparate biological models has the potential to provide insights that cannot be gained from studying the models in isolation. Computational modeling provides the means to integrate and test theories that span different temporal and spatial scales, and thus provides an ideal platform for forging this link. This paper describes a model that combines three key levels of biological theory. A computational model of gene regulation is integrated with a model of early land plant morphology, and placed in an evolutionary environment of competing fitness pressures. Simulation results indicate that each of these sub-models constrain possible phenotypic fitness. This work provides a methodological scaffold upon which increasingly complex models at each level of genotype, phenotype and environment can be built.
Why are we still using a one size fits all philosophy for systematic reserve planning in Australia?
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2008
DOI: 10.1071/PC080233
Abstract: Funds available for investment in bio ersity conservation are small in comparison with the resources available to those interested in using the land for other purposes. In response to this disparity, the discipline of systematic conservation planning has developed tools to optimize decision making for investing limited conservation funds in the most effective and transparent manner possible (Possingham et al. 2006). Since its origins in the mid-1980s, systematic conservation planning has grown rapidly, spawning hundreds of peer-reviewed papers (Pressey et al. 2007). Importantly, it now shapes policy legislation in many terrestrial and marine regions across the globe.
Ecological Restoration: Principles, Values, and Structure of an Emerging Profession
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-11-2008
Protect the last of the wild
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 31-10-2018
Protected areas and global conservation of migratory birds
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 04-12-0160
Abstract: Animals that migrate pass through a varying number of regions. Each of these regions contributes to a different component of their life cycles. Runge et al. looked at the degree of protection migratory birds receive, globally, across their breeding and wintering ranges. A remarkably low percentage of migratory birds receive adequate protection across their entire ranges. Given that over half the world's migratory bird populations are declining, these results emphasize the urgency with which we must act to protect birds across their entire migratory cycle. Science , this issue p. 1255
Climate Change Adaptation Planning for Biodiversity Conservation: A Review
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2012
Investing in Threatened Species Conservation: Does Corruption Outweigh Purchasing Power?
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 27-07-2011
How to send a finch extinct
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2019
Net positive outcomes for nature
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-11-2019
Tropical forests are home to over half of the world’s vertebrate species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-10-2021
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.2420
Abstract: Tropical forests are renowned for their astonishing ersity of life, but the fundamental question of how many species occur in tropical forests remains unanswered. Using geographic range maps and data on species habitat associations, we determined that tropical forests harbor 62% of global terrestrial vertebrate species, more than twice the number found in any other terrestrial biome on Earth. Up to 29% of global vertebrate species are endemic to tropical forests, with more than 20% of these species at risk of extinction. Humid tropical forests (also known as tropical rainforests) and the Neotropics dominate as centers of species ersity, harboring more than 90% and nearly half of all tropical forest vertebrates, respectively. To maintain the bio ersity that underpins the ecosystem functions and services essential for human well‐being, we emphasize the critical importance of environmental policies aimed at reducing tropical deforestation and mitigating deleterious anthropogenic pressures on these imperiled ecosystems.
Protected land: Threat of invasive species Response
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 10-08-2018
Positive biodiversity-productivity relationship predominant in global forests
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 14-10-2016
Abstract: The relationship between bio ersity and ecosystem productivity has been explored in detail in herbaceous vegetation, but patterns in forests are far less well understood. Liang et al. have amassed a global forest data set from ,000 s le plots in 44 countries. A positive and consistent relationship can be discerned between tree ersity and ecosystem productivity at landscape, country, and ecoregion scales. On average, a 10% loss in bio ersity leads to a 3% loss in productivity. This means that the economic value of maintaining bio ersity for the sake of global forest productivity is more than fivefold greater than global conservation costs. Science , this issue p. 196
A Global Mitigation Hierarchy for Nature Conservation
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 18-04-2018
Spatial priorities for conserving the most intact biodiverse forests within Central Africa
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 11-09-2020
A global mapping template for natural and modified habitat across terrestrial Earth
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2020
Biodiversity: The ravages of guns, nets and bulldozers
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-2016
DOI: 10.1038/536143A
What works for threatened species recovery? An empirical evaluation for Australia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-01-2011
The global rarity of intact coastal regions
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 12-05-2021
DOI: 10.1101/2021.05.10.443490
Abstract: Management of the land-sea interface is considered essential for global conservation and sustainability objectives, as coastal regions maintain natural processes that support bio ersity and the livelihood of billions of people. However, assessments of coastal regions have focused on either strictly the terrestrial or marine realm, and as a consequence, we still have a poor understanding of the overall state of Earth’s coastal regions. Here, by integrating the terrestrial human footprint and marine cumulative human impact maps, we provide a global assessment of the anthropogenic pressures affecting coastal areas. Just 15.5% of coastal areas globally can be considered having low anthropogenic pressure, mostly found in Canada, Russia, and Greenland. Conversely, 47.9% of coastal regions are heavily impacted by humanity with most countries (84.1%) having % of their coastal regions degraded. Nearly half (43.3%) of protected areas across coastal regions are exposed to high human pressures. In order to meet global sustainability objectives, we identify those nations that must undertake greater actions to preserve and restore coastal regions so as to ensure global sustainable development objectives can be met.
Erratum: The Location and Protection Status of Earth's Diminishing Marine Wilderness (Current Biology (2018) 28(15) (2506–2512.e3), (S0960982218307723) (10.1016/j.cub.2018.06.010))
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2018
Biodiversity risks and safeguards of China’s hydropower financing in Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) countries
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2022
A national‐scale dataset for threats impacting Australia’s imperiled flora and fauna
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-08-2021
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.7920
Abstract: Australia is in the midst of an extinction crisis, having already lost 10% of terrestrial mammal fauna since European settlement and with hundreds of other species at high risk of extinction. The decline of the nation's biota is a result of an array of threatening processes however, a comprehensive taxon‐specific understanding of threats and their relative impacts remains undocumented nationally. Using expert consultation, we compile the first complete, validated, and consistent taxon‐specific threat and impact dataset for all nationally listed threatened taxa in Australia. We confined our analysis to 1,795 terrestrial and aquatic taxa listed as threatened (Vulnerable, Endangered, or Critically Endangered) under Australian Commonwealth law. We engaged taxonomic experts to generate taxon‐specific threat and threat impact information to consistently apply the IUCN Threat Classification Scheme and Threat Impact Scoring System, as well as eight broad‐level threats and 51 subcategory threats, for all 1,795 threatened terrestrial and aquatic threatened taxa. This compilation produced 4,877 unique taxon–threat–impact combinations with the most frequently listed threats being Habitat loss, fragmentation, and degradation ( n = 1,210 taxa), and Invasive species and disease ( n = 966 taxa). Yet when only high‐impact threats or medium‐impact threats are considered, Invasive species and disease become the most prevalent threats. This dataset provides critical information for conservation action planning, national legislation and policy, and prioritizing investments in threatened species management and recovery.
Related Organisations
University Of New South Wales Canberra At Australian Defence Force Academy
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University Of New South Wales At Australian Defence Force Academy
Location: Australia
University Of Oxford
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Related Funding Activities
Linkage Projects - Grant ID: LP150100934
Start Date: 01-2016
End Date: 12-2019
Amount: $146,341.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityDiscovery Projects - Grant ID: DP160102107
Start Date: 06-2016
End Date: 06-2022
Amount: $478,600.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityLinkage Projects - Grant ID: LP160100941
Start Date: 12-2016
End Date: 02-2020
Amount: $180,098.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityDiscovery Projects - Grant ID: DP160101397
Start Date: 2016
End Date: 12-2019
Amount: $340,100.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityLinkage Projects - Grant ID: LP170101143
Start Date: 02-2019
End Date: 02-2024
Amount: $416,000.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded Activity